Transformers Legacy of Harmony season 1
by SonicPrime972
Summary: After returning from Camp Everfree, Twilight, and the girls go to help Sunset pick her first car. What no one knows is the car she chose is a high-tech alien robot who is part of an elite unit of such known as Autobots, who are at war with the evil Decepticons. Can the girls help Optimus Prime and the Autobots end the war? Enjoy! Rated T for death. (Season 1 of 3)
1. Chapter 1

**Time to get a little more interplanetary. As such, it's time for the Autobots to land on Earth and meet the girls. Before I begin, I'd like to say that some of the Transformers designs are the property of CyRaptor on deviantArt, but the rest are from Arc 1.**

 **After returning from Camp Everfree, Twilight, and the girls go to help Sunset pick her first car. What no one knows is the car she chose is a high-tech alien robot who is part of an elite unit of such known as Autobots, who are at war with the evil Decepticons. Can the girls help Optimus Prime and the Autobots end the war? Find out for yourselves. Enjoy!**

 **I own nothing but the idea.**

 **Ch. 1: New Ride**

 **Year: -200,000 (You know what I mean)**

 **Planet: Cybertron**

 **Location: 20 kliks from the Iacon Hall of Records**

Light years away from Earth, millennia ago, there existed a large world made of pure metal. This was planet Cybertron, home to a race of highly advanced robotic lifeforms. The planet was torn to scrap and bathed in oil, thanks to a civil war between two armies of Cybertronians; the Autobots, who fought for freedom and justice, and the Decepticons, who fought for power and complete domination of the universe. In one of the particularly bloody battles in the late stages of the war, three of the Autobots were fighting against an entire squadron of green and purple Decepticons.

"We're getting hammered here," said one of the Autobots. He was yellow with a few black stripes running along his chest plate and legs.

"Stand strong, Bumblebee," said another. "We have to keep the AllSpark from Megatron's hands." He was bright red with a large gun on each arm and firing into the Decepticons.

"I understand, Ironhide," said Bumblebee. "Smokescreen! Get the AllSpark to the Ark! Now! We'll cover you!"

"I'm on it!" said the last of them. He was blue and white and holding a cube which, to Cybertronians, was hand-sized. Then he transformed into a futuristic hovering sports car and raced away with Bumblebee and Ironhide following close behind. Then the Decepticons combined into a giant robot that caused planet-quakes with every step.

"It's Devastator!" shouted Ironhide. "We gotta hurry!" Soon the Autobots arrived at their base; a giant building in front of a large Ark-class transport ship.

"Optimus! We've got the AllSpark! Open the ship!" shouted Smokescreen. The doors opened and the three quickly clambered inside and hid the AllSpark in the cargo hold before they ran for the bridge.

"Status report." said a large robot with a red body, blue legs, and head.

"We left the cube in the hold, but we've got Devastator on our tail. He's on his way here now!" said Ironhide. "Optimus, we don't take off now, we might not just lose the war, we might lose the universe."

"Understood," said Optimus before he turned on his coms. "Perceptor, I leave Cybertron in your hands."

"Very well, Optimus. I won't disappoint you." said a voice over the coms. Then a large tank rolled onto the ship's bridge and aimed at Optimus. Ironhide saw it and quickly jumped into the way of its barrel, which fired and blew a large divot in his chest.

"Ironhide!" shouted Optimus before two medics attended to him and he directed his attention to the tank, which transformed into a large robot with a cannon on his arm. "Megatron."

"Optimus. I suppose I should be thankful for bringing the AllSpark right to me," he said. "But truth be told, I found this whole thing extremely boring. So I'll just slaughter you and take the cube with no resistance."

"Even if you destroy me, Megatron, the rest of the Autobots will rally to defeat you." said Optimus.

"Then I'll just have to destroy you all," said Megatron. Then Optimus drew two large axes and dueled Megatron, who was defending himself with a sword that telescoped from his arm to a blast-proof airlock and locked him into it.

"Optimus, Ironhide's stable and the Ark is ready for launch." said a voice over the coms.

"Then get us to the SpaceBridge, Jetfire." replied Optimus.

"Copy that, sir. Hope you got a good look at Cybertron though," said Jetfire as the ship started flying away to a large vortex in space. "Odds are we'll never see it again." Meanwhile, the Decepticons were on the ground activating their own ship.

"Commander Starscream," a con with large guns said to a flyer. "The _Nemesis_ is ready for launch."

"Excellent. I fear that Lord Megatron requires our assistance," said Starscream. "Ready weapon systems and prepare to launch, Onslaught."

"Yes, commander," said Onslaught and their ship lifted off and took pursuit of the Ark. Then Smokescreen saw something on the radar of the ark.

"Optimus, the Decepticons are on our tail." he said.

"Full throttle, Wheeljack," Optimus said to the coms.

"We're already at full, sir," someone replied.

"Then get us going faster." said Bumblebee.

"I can't work miracles, Bumblebee," said Wheeljack. "I'm giving her all she's got."

"Did you at least get the weapon systems back online?" asked Ironhide.

"Affirmative," said Wheeljack. "The controls are on the far left console on the bridge." Jetfire quickly ran to the console and fired practically all the plasma cannons available, causing major damage to the Decepticons' ship. The _Nemesis_ only managed to get off one shot with its mangled weapons, but it hit the cockpit and sucked Jetfire and a few other men out into space before a large metal curtain sealed the hole.

"Jetfire!" shouted Bumblebee. "Turn around! We've gotta go back for him!"

"No time!" said Ratchet, one of the medics. "The SpaceBridge is destabilizing. If we don't get through now, we'll never escape Megatron's men."

"Speaking of which…" said Optimus as he pressed a button on a console, opening the airlock Megatron was in, catapulting him out into space, sending him slamming against the cockpit of the _Nemesis_ like a fly on a car's windshield.

"All airlocks clear. Full speed ahead," said Optimus. Then the Ark entered the vortex and disappeared. As did the vortex, leaving the _Nemesis_ floating unpowered in space.

"Starscream, I expect a good explanation as to why we didn't destroy the Autobots here and now." said Megatron.

"Because, Lord Megatron, the ship has taken extensive damage," said Starscream. "But Thundercracker tells me the engines are still running at half-capacity, and Soundwave says the computer still has the coordinates the Autobots are heading for."

"How long until I can lock eyes with Optimus Prime again, Soundwave?" Megatron asked a blocky purple con with a Gatling gun on one shoulder and a sonic cannon on the other.

"ETA to coordinates; 200 thousand stellar cycles," he replied in a monotone voice.

"Very well," said Megatron. "Soundwave set the computer to automatically hone in on the coordinates. Once you're done, return to the stasis pods with the rest of us." Soon all the Decepticons on the ship were in large canisters that nearly froze them alive.

Meanwhile, the Autobots had exited the SpaceBridge and flew towards a small planet that looked abundant with life.

"Are you sure these are the right coordinates, Jazz?" Bumblebee asked a gray robot with wheels for feet and speaker-like weapons on his shoulders.

"Positive. Cliffjumper and I got 'em from a Con outpost in the Sea of Rust," he replied. "It IDed this planet as being abundant with power and Energon deposits from the early part of the war, remember?"

"Oh right. This is one of the planets Sentinel Prime's men hid some Energon on," said Smokescreen.

"It may also serve as the battlefield we need to end this war permanently," said Optimus. Then an alarm started blaring as the ship shook and rattled. "What's happening, Cliffjumper?" Then a red Autobot with small silver horns grabbed the controls.

"The planet's gravitational pull is pulling us in," he said. "The coordinates we got put us too close to the planet."

"Can we land?" asked Bumblebee. On the inside, he was thinking "Please say yes!" repeatedly.

"Afraid not," said Cliffjumper. "The landing gear hatches were jammed shut in the firefight. Even if we could get them open, we're entering the atmosphere so they might get ripped off or burned off. Best we're gonna have to manage is a controlled crash landing."

"Then manage it!" said Ironhide.

"I can't if we wanna survive this," said Cliff. "We're gonna have to have Teletraan do it for us."

"Right," said Optimus. "Teletraan 1, initiate emergency landing protocol 9-7-3."

"Protocol initiated," said a computer voice. "All Autobots on board, report to stasis pods. You will be awoken when all conditions are deemed normal."

"You heard the computer," said Bumblebee. "Let's move, move, move! All hands to stasis pods!" Quickly, all the Autobots were in their stasis pods and the ship crashed into the planet, dirt and stone covering it over the centuries.

 **Year: 2016**

 **Planet: Earth**

 **Location: Canterlot City**

It was a few weeks after the CHS Wondercolts returned from Camp Everfree and Sunset had been taking odd jobs for a while, concerning her friends. One day, they found her at a car wash cleaning off a red off-road custom H2 Hummer.

"Sunset, what are you doing here?" asked Twilight.

"Just trying to earn a little cash," said Sunset.

"Hey, if ya need money, Ah can help ya out," said Applejack. "Ya got any idea how much my family makes off cider?"

"I know, I know. But I really wanna earn it for myself," said Sunset.

"Why, what do you need it for?" asked Rarity.

"Well, if you must know, I'm trying to get enough to buy myself a new car," said Sunset as she finished cleaning the Hummer. Then the car wash manager walked out with some money in his hand.

"Hey, nice work Sunset," he said. "Twelve cars in three hours. Not bad. Here's your pay,"

"Thanks, sir," said Sunset and she counted out one hundred dollars as she went to change. When she came back, she smiled from ear to ear.

"Good news girls. I've got more than enough for my new ride," she said and the girls cheered and congratulated her. Later, they all arrived at a local car dealership to look some of the choices over. Then Sunset noticed something Twilight was holding.

"Hey, what's that?" she asked.

"What, this?" she asked showing the others a glowing blue crystal. "I found it outside my house this morning. I'm not sure why, but I think someone gave it to me."

"Why would they do that?" asked Fluttershy.

"I'm not sure, but I figured I might as well hang onto it," she said. Then the car dealer walked up.

"Howdy girls, welcome to Grease Spot's Hubcap Heaven," he said. "I'm just willin' to bet you're here for a set of wheels."

"Sure enough am," said Sunset. "I'm looking for something that fits my style."

"Hmm. Lemme see," said the dealer as he led her and the others along. "Ladies, your first enchilada of freedom awaits under one of these hoods. Now lemme tell ya somethin', sweetie. A driver don't pick the car. The car'll pick the driver. It's some sort of mystical bond between man and machine." Then Rainbow looked over to one side of the lot and saw a bright yellow 2006 Toyota Scion xA with black racing stripes on its hood and roof.

"How about that one?" she asked. Sunset looked and smiled.

"Hey yeah, this thing looks nice," she said. "How much?" The dealer looked and was kind of surprised.

"Manolo!" he shouted.

"Wha?" asked a Mexican who walked out.

"What is this thing? This car! Where'd it come from?" asked the dealer.

"I dunno, Greasy! I never seen it before! That's loco!" said Manolo.

"Don't you go Ricky Ricardo on me, Manny! Just find out where it came from!" said Grease Spot.

"Hey, what's with this symbol on the hood?" asked Applejack. The others looked and saw a red face-like insignia on the car's hood.

"I dunno," said Twilight. "I've never seen this sort of thing before."

"Yeah well, I ain't never seen this car before either." said Grease.

"But I can still have it, right?" asked Sunset. "How much?"

"Well, let's see," said Grease. "Considering the semi-classic nature of the vehicle, with the slick wheels and custom paint job, five grand."

"Ugh. Sorry, I've only got four-fifty," said Sunset.

"Well, that's close enough," said Grease. "Just fork over the cash and it's yours."

"Aw sweet. Thanks," said Sunset and quickly handed over all the money she gathered from her odd jobs. "Cmon girls, let's take it for a test drive." They all smiled and hopped in. Rainbow got shotgun, Rarity, Pinkie and Fluttershy hopped in the back and Twilight and Applejack climbed into the trunk. Then, as Sunset turned the key, the dial on the radio turned itself and turned on some music.

 **(Play "Highway to Hell" – AC/DC)**

"Whoa. Did you do that?" asked Rainbow.

"I think so," said Sunset. "I hope so. Ah, forget it. Let's ride." Then they rumbled off in the car down the road. What no one knew was that an F-117A Nighthawk stealth fighter was flying overhead watching them… with no one at the controls

"Lord Megatron, this is Skywarp reporting in," a voice said into a radio. "I've located the Autobot known as Bumblebee. He has taken the form of a human transport vehicle and has been purchased by a group of humans, one of which has an Energon crystal in their possession."

"Acknowledged, Skywarp," a voice replied over the radio. "Maintain pursuit and report if anything comes up."

"And if the Autobot sees me and attacks?" asked Skywarp.

"Well, I'd say the time for him to join the AllSpark is long since passed," replied the voice. "As for the humans, destroy them as well."

"It will be done, master," said Skywarp. "Maintaining pursuit." Meanwhile, Megatron was sitting in his throne on his ship in orbit.

"That's right, Autobot," he said devilishly. "Lead me right to Optimus Prime so I can destroy him and you once and for all."


	2. Chapter 2

**Ch. 2: Bots and Cons**

The girls were still having the time of their lives in the car, but Twilight was still concerned about the crystal she had in her hand, and how it seemed to glow when she got into the car with it on her.

"I still think you're being delusional, Twilight," said Rainbow. "I can't sense any magic coming from that crystal."

"Neither do I," said Sunset. "What about that thing is so interesting anyway?"

"I don't know," said Twilight. "I just feel like there's more to this thing than meets the eye. Even for a group like ours."

"Oh, come on Twilight," said Pinkie. "After all, it's not like that crystal is some sort of power source that powers giant alien robots who've been fighting for thousands of years."

"Oh, please," said Rainbow. "What are the odds of that being true?"

"Five bucks says I'm right," said Pinkie.

"Oh, you are so on," said Rainbow, as she leaned back and shook her hand. Then Applejack saw something out the back windshield.

"I don't mean to freak anyone out, but I think we're being tailed," she said. The others looked up and saw a large stealth fighter up above them.

"What the heck? Is that a military jet?" asked Rainbow.

"What would they want with us?" asked Rarity. Then out of nowhere, the gas pedal was pulled to the floor and the car roared down the practically empty highway.

"Whoa! Sunset, what are you doing?" asked Twilight. "You can't outrun a military jet."

"Yeah, the thing is I'm not driving. It's almost like this car has a mind of its own," said Sunset, trying to push down the brake pedal, but it was stuck upright.

"Bumblebee to base," said a voice, shocking the girls. "I've got a Decepticon on my tailpipe, and some humans are with me. Requesting immediate support."

"What the-?!" said Rainbow. "Who was that?!"

"Humans?! Bumblebee, what was the first rule Optimus gave us when we woke up?!" asked another voice.

"Keep a low profile, I know," said the first voice, now identified as Bumblebee. "But it doesn't look like Megatron gave any of his men any similar orders. So Wheeljack, if it isn't too much to ask, could you please HURRY THE SCRAP UP WITH THAT BACK-UP!"

"All right, all right already," said the other voice, now known as Wheeljack. "Dispatching Ironhide and Jazz to your position. But you know Optimus and Ratchet ain't gonna be happy about the humans."

"Oh cmon, Ratchet can get melted down for all I care," said Bumblebee. "I gotta get these kids to safety."

"You are aware I'm still at base, right Bumblebee?" asked another voice.

"Oop. Uh, sorry Ratchet. Seriously, though. How far out is backup?" asked Bumblebee.

"We're on our way. ETA, three minutes," said one last voice.

"Copy that. Heading west on Highway 195," said Bumblebee.

"What are you?" asked Sunset. Then the dashboard touchscreen went to static before the face of a yellow robot with a blue visor appeared on it.

"Name's Bumblebee," he said.

"What are you, some sort of advanced A.I.?" asked Twilight. Bumblebee just laughed.

"A.I.? No, I'm an Autobot," he said. "A sentient robotic organism from planet Cybertron."

"Well, what do you know? You were right," Rainbow said to Pinkie. "I guess I owe you five bucks." Then Twilight got back on topic.

"Cybertron? I've never heard of that planet," she said.

"Well, that's not really all that surprising," he said. "It's light years away from this planet, and it's pretty much dead anyway."

"Why? What happened?" asked Rarity.

"Well, you see that jet following us?" he asked. "He's a Decepticon; an evil warrior whose leader, Megatron has plans of subjugating the entire universe."

"Subju-what?" asked Rainbow.

"In layman's terms, Megatron wants to be emperor of the universe." said Bumblebee.

"Sheesh, and I thought honesty was your thing, Applejack," said Twilight.

"Tell me about it." said the cowgirl. Then the jet started firing laser blasts at the vehicle out of its guns.

"AAH!" screamed Fluttershy.

"Don't worry, back-up's en route," said Bumblebee before a few blasts started getting closer and closer to him. "Scrap it. Hang on tight!" Then Bumblebee drove clean off the highway into the empty plains outside town. The ride was rough even for the large robot, and it wasn't fun.

"I should've scanned something with better suspension." he said.

"Hey! This makes my voice sound silly!" said Pinkie as she bounced with the rough land.

"Is she always like this?" asked Bumblebee.

"Oh, you're just getting to know Pinkie Pie," said Sunset. "You might wanna brace yourself because she only gets crazier from here."

"You say while riding in an alien robot that can turn into a car?" asked Bumblebee.

"Oh, this sort of stuff just happens on Mondays," said Sunset. Then the jet fired a missile into the ground in front of Bumblebee, creating a huge pothole.

"Oh jeez. No time to swerve. Everyone out! Now!" he said.

"At sixty-five miles an hour? Are you crazy?" asked Twilight.

"Either you get out yourself or I throw you out," said Bee. "Take your pick." After hearing that, Applejack opened the trunk door and held down her hat.

"All right! I've done this sort of thing hundreds of times before!" said Rainbow climbing back. "Remember, roll when you land! It'll lower the damage you take!" Quickly everyone unbuckled themselves and jumped overboard, following Rainbow's instructions. Then Bumblebee's body started changing.

His trunk door closed and his back end flipped up onto his roof before his cabin flipped out behind him, sending him flipping end over end. Then his back turned into a pair of legs, which he used to cushion his landing. Then his back wheels flipped up onto his front doors before they flipped around on his front wheels, revealing arms which flipped back with the doors for plates. Then his front end flipped down, the hood separating from the fenders and turning into a chestplate which his head flipped out of.

"Whoa!" said the girls. Then the blue crystal Twilight had started glowing again, which caught Bumblebee's eye before he turned on his coms.

"Guys, might wanna hurry up on that back-up! One of the girls has an Energon crystal," he said.

"Energon!? And you didn't tell us this sooner because?" asked Ironhide.

"Because I didn't know, now hurry up!" said Bee as the jet turned into a large Decepticon with rocket engines on his back. "Skywarp. It's been a while."

"Indeed, it has, Bumblebee." said the con. "What has it been, 200 thousand years since Tiger Pax?" The girls were amazed at how old Bumblebee was, and yet he seemed so young.

"And you know, I still remember the pain you caused me when you tore out my voice-box." said Bumblebee.

"You're just lucky your medic was able to get you a new one," said Skywarp. "But enough about that. Once I take care of you, I'll find your base and dispatch with Optimus Prime. Then Lord Megatron will rule the universe." Bumblebee was still determined not to lose, but he didn't speak for a while. Skywarp smirked. "What's the matter? Speechless?" After hearing that, Bumblebee went crazy until he saw a large metal object flying toward Skywarp.

"Get down!" he shouted to the girls. They quickly did so before the object exploded. Then the girls saw a gray 2014 Nissan 370Z driving up along with the same Hummer from the car wash.

"Wait a sec. You mean I was washing an Autobot when I got the money to buy you?" asked Sunset. Then the two Autobots transformed and ran over.

"Oh. I see you've already met Ironhide," said Bumblebee, gesturing to the big red Autobot. "You guys good to go?"

"I thought you were a mechanic," said the gray bot.

"I was before the war, Jazz," said Bee. "But that life is behind me. Now I'm just a soldier."

"And not a very good one at that," said Ironhide, loading his guns.

"Okay, that's it," said Bee. "Once we're done with Skywarp, you and I are sparring back at base."

"Sure thing, but just one question," said Ironhide.

"Shoot," said Bee.

"Where is Skywarp?" he asked. Everyone looked and saw he was right. Skywarp had just disappeared.

"Scrap. I almost forgot about that Transwarp device Scavenger made for him," said Bee.

"Transwarp?" asked Rainbow.

"A miniature teleporter," said Ironhide. "He could pop up anywhere." Then a large laser blasted out from the air which hit Jazz in the shoulder. They looked and saw Skywarp high above them flying with his inbuilt rockets.

"I got this," said Jazz, pulling out a disc that looked like a large sound system. Then he threw it onto the ground underneath Skywarp and it went off with a loud sonic burst, disorienting Skywarp so he was facing the back. "Now!" Quickly, Bumblebee swapped his hands out for a pair of large stinger weapons and launched a huge blast of plasma energy out at the engines, killing one of them.

"Bullseye!" he shouted in victory as the Decepticon fell to the ground. Then Ironhide spun the minigun on his arm and fired at the Decepticon.

"Skywarp to _Nemesis_. I'm taking heavy fire. Request emergency GroundBridge." he said into his communicator. Then a large green vortex appeared behind Skywarp and he quickly ran through it. Jazz got off another few lucky shots with a semi-automatic pistol before the vortex disappeared.

"Well, that was fun," said Jazz, holding his punctured shoulder in pain.

"We're gonna need to get you to Ratchet and Red Alert." said Bumblebee, pulling him up.

"Bee's right. We can't risk losing someone as powerful as you," said Ironhide.

"Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa. What about us?" asked Rainbow.

"She's right, Ironhide," said Bee. "We can't just let them go. They know our secret. We can't risk letting them go or they might tell others about us, and our mission would be compromised."

"Mission? Wait, you guys aren't here to take over, are you?" asked Sunset.

"The Decepticons are," said Ironhide. "We're here to end the war. Permanently."

"Well, either way, we can keep a secret," said Twilight.

"Regardless, Optimus Prime is going to want to see you," said Ironhide before he turned on his communicator. "Wheeljack, we need a GroundBridge. Jazz is wounded and we've got human witnesses. Tell Ratchet to get MedBay ready and get Optimus."

"Copy that. Opening GroundBridge now," said Wheeljack. Then a vortex, much like the last one opened a few feet away.

"Come on," said Bumblebee as he went back into his vehicle mode. "Our commanding officer will want to talk to you."

"You heard him. All aboard," said Sunset as the girls got in in the same arrangement as last time.

"Is this going to hurt?" asked Fluttershy.

"Well, we've never actually tested the effects of a GroundBridge on humans, but as the old saying goes, 'No time like the present'," said Ironhide as he carried Jazz over.

"Great. No pressure," said Rainbow as Bumblebee drove through the vortex and it closed just as Jazz and Ironhide passed through.


	3. Chapter 3

**Ch. 3: The History of Cybertron**

Soon the girls exited the vortex, feeling disgusting.

"Whoa. Are your bones vibrating?" asked Sunset.

"Ow. My head." groaned Rainbow.

"Ugh. I think my stomach is inside-out," said Twilight.

"Eh. I think I swallowed my brain, and it's not sitting right," groaned Pinkie, before she gagged.

"Ap-pap-pap-pap-pap! Not on the floor mats!" said Bumblebee, opening her window. Quickly she stuck her head out and relieved the contents of her stomach… all over the door. "OH! What? Oh, so you take 'Not on the floor mats' and think that means 'Barf on my door'?! Ugh! I just got this new paint job too," Quickly he opened the doors and threw everyone out before he drove away. "Red Alert, get me a decontamination bath. Now!"

"On it, Bee!" said an Autobot with plates that resembled an ambulance before he opened a tap in a large tub which Bee was lifted into before he transformed in the tub. Then another bot, much like Red Alert, walked over to Jazz.

"Ah Jazz, I was expecting you," he said, pulling out a small blowtorch. "Hold still. I'll get you patched up." Then he put the torch to the wound along with some soldering iron and welded it shut.

"Well anyways, those are the humans we brought with us," said Bumblebee, pointing at the girls from his bath. The big robot at the console looked at the girls and they saw he had what looked like a mustache and beard along with a large crane arm on his shoulder.

"Don't look like much," he said.

"You'd be surprised, Wheeljack," said Ironhide. Twilight's eyes were wide with wonder at the enormous living machines that stood before her.

"This is incredible. The being that built you must be incredibly advanced to have made you all like this," she said. After hearing that, all the bots in the base were silent for a minute before Bumblebee, Jazz, and Wheeljack burst out laughing.

"Yeah, I guess Primus is pretty advanced for a 4 billion-year-old planet core, am I right boys?" asked Bumblebee as he clambered out of his bath.

"Do not speak ill of our creator, Bumblebee," said a serious voice. "For to do so, is to speak ill of all of our fallen allies." Everyone looked and saw a large red Autobot with a blue helmet and legs. When Rainbow looked close, she could tell right away that his alternate mode was a big rig.

"Of course, Optimus. I was just joking around with the humans," said Bumblebee.

"Wheeljack told me you would be arriving with my men," said Optimus. "I am Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots."

"Yeah, I think we got that," said Rainbow as she and the others walked up a catwalk to the main control panel. "Why are you here?"

"To defend your world from the Decepticons." said Optimus.

"Y'know, like the joker who gave me my latest battlefield memory?" said Jazz, gesturing to his shoulder.

"Sometimes I just don't get you Wreckers, Jazz," said Ironhide. "Treating scars as trophies?"

"What about that shiner you got there?" asked Bumblebee, referring to the small scratch under Ironhide's left eye.

"That is a completely different situation," said Ironhide.

"Okay, so then why are the Decepticons here?" asked Rainbow.

"A fair question, Rainbow Dash," said Optimus. "They are here because our world of Cybertron is now uninhabitable. Ravaged by millennia of civil war,"

"Wh- Why were you fighting a war?" asked Fluttershy.

"Foremost, for complete and total control over our planet's supply of Energon," said Optimus. "The fuel, lifeblood, and ammunition for all Cybertronians; Autobot or Decepticon." Then Wheeljack pressed a button on his control panel, activating a hologram of a large-seeming metallic planet with fires everywhere. "The battle was fierce and endured for thousands of years. In the beginning of it all, I fought alongside an army of Autobots whom I considered brothers. But in war, casualties occur and it was thus that our numbers dwindled and we were forced to leave our home,"

Rainbow yawned in boredom as the hologram was deactivated. "Is there gonna be a quiz?" she asked playing with her hair. Twilight whacked her arm. "Ow! What?"

"You're talking to a war veteran, Rainbow," she said. "Could you at least try and show a little tact?"

"So then what does Megatron or any of this have to do with us?" asked Sunset.

"Megatron views any who stand against him as an enemy," said Ratchet. "If you stand with the Autobots, then doubly so. Since he now believes you stand with us, he will not hesitate to take you hostage and use you as bait for us to end the war."

"Gotcha. See any vehicles with guns aimed at us, call you guys," said Applejack as she and the others walked down to the floor. "Can we go now? Mah granny's gonna freak if I'm not back before dark."

"Are you insane?! We are the first beings on this planet to make contact with alien lifeforms. How could you pass this up?" asked Twilight.

"Uh, alien lifeforms who have been in a war for thousands of years," said Rainbow. "I'd very much appreciate not getting killed on the battlefield."

"Then it is best that you remain here, under our protection," said Optimus, worrying Wheeljack. "At least, until we can determine our enemies' intentions."

"Optimus, with all due respect, the human children are in as much trouble here as anywhere," he said.

"Children?" asked Rarity, slightly insulted.

"They have no protective shells," continued Wheeljack. "If they get underfoot, they're gonna go… squish." As if to prove his point, he moved one of his feet a bit.

"Then, for the time being, Wheeljack, we must watch where we step," said Optimus. Then a hologram of a human girl wearing a maroon variation of a Japanese Policewoman's uniform appeared.

"Optimus, Agent Fowler's on his way." she said.

"Thank you, T-AI," he said. (FYI, it's pronounced "tie" for those of you who are curious) "We can handle it." Then T-AI saw the girls and they were all confused.

"Who are they?" she asked.

"Our latest alibis." said Ironhide.

"I believe you mean allies." said Rarity.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever kid," Ironhide waved them off. "I need an Energon drip." Then T-AI flipped down to the girls and landed perfectly.

"Hello girls," she said. "I am T-AI, the Autobots' Tactical Artificial Intelligence and daughter of Teletraan 1."

"Well, nice to meet you," said Rarity, taking her hand in a shake. Surprisingly, her hand didn't faze through T-AI's.

"How is that possible?" asked Twilight. "I thought you were a hologram,"

"I am. I'm hard-light, which means I can do practically everything you humans can, but I am completely indestructible," she said.

"Well, what's the deal with this Fowler guy?" asked Rainbow. "I thought we were the only humans who knew about you,"

"You're the only human _civilians_ who know about us," clarified Ratchet. "Special Agent William Fowler is our designated liaison and emissary to the government of your world."

"And since he only visits when we screw up, now might not be the best time for you to meet him," said Bumblebee. Quickly, T-AI beamed herself back up to the catwalk and the other girls hid under the staircase before an African American in a suit walked in from the elevator.

"Six wrecks, 27 fender benders, a two-and-a-half traffic jam on 195, and of particular note, numerous reports of a tiny Toyota that tried to outrun a military stealth fighter." he said bitterly.

"Tiny? Okay, I have put up with plenty of your scrap, Fowler, but that is just way over the line," said Bumblebee angrily. Jazz put his hand on the bot's shoulder to cool him off.

"Sorry Fowler, he's still kinda charged up." he said and rolled away with him.

"So… Anything you'd like to get off your tin chest, Prime?" asked Fowler.

"We have it fully under control, Agent Fowler," said Optimus.

"They're back, aren't they?" asked Fowler.

"Who, the Decepticons? I doubt they ever even left," said T-AI. "This planet is just too valuable."

"Then it's time to wake up the Pentagon," said Fowler.

"Listen well, Agent Fowler," said Optimus. "The Autobot army is your best and possibly only defense against this Decepticon threat."

"Says you," said Fowler.

"Hey shrimpo," said Ironhide. "Did anyone get splattered on that freeway? Team Prime knows _when_ to use force," Then he ripped a piece of equipment off the panel and crushed it with his grip. "And how _much_ to use."

"Ironhide, I needed that!" cried Wheeljack.

"Enough!" ordered Optimus, before he turned back to Fowler. "Earthling military involvement would only result in disaster."

"Maybe _you_ can condone widespread human casualties, Fowler," said T-AI. "The Autobots however, cannot."

"Then do us all a favor, and handle this, sweetcheeks," said Fowler. " _Under_ the radar." Then he walked back to the elevator. "Or I will." The doors closed and he left.

"Pretty big bearings. For a human," said Ironhide. Rainbow cleared her throat and knocked on his leg. "Yeah, yeah, aside from you,"

"Agent Fowler is concerned for his world, old friend," said Optimus. "As would any other human." Meanwhile, on the _Nemesis_ , in orbit, Megatron punched Skywarp across the bridge.

"One simple directive," he said walking over. "Follow the Autobot back to his base and destroy all there. Can you not even follow the simplest of tasks?"

"Please Lord Megatron," begged Skywarp. "The Autobot saw me first, and you yourself said he should've joined the AllSpark ages ago." Then Megatron kicked him further away.

"And yet he still lives," said Megatron angrily. "So now you owe me a spark. If it isn't one of an Autobot, it had better be yours." Then he pulled a large flail out and was ready to crush Skywarp until Starscream walked in.

"Lord Megatron, please," he said, holding his master's forearm.

"Are you going to try and talk me out of this, Starscream?" he asked, pulling his arm away.

"Far from it, my liege," said Starscream. "Although he did fail this solar cycle, he is still my brother, and as such is under the protection of both myself and Thundercracker. Speaking of whom, I just received word from the scouting mission Thundercracker is leading in the farthest regions of the system. The mission that Skywarp commissioned."

"And?" asked Megatron.

"They found it," smirked Starscream. "He's requested a SpaceBridge."

"Very well then. You live to reclaim your honor another day, Skywarp," said Megatron. "Soundwave, activate the SpaceBridge."

"Yes, Lord Megatron," said the large boxy Con. Then he pulled a lever on the console and from behind the moon, a large ring built into a meteor opened a vortex similar to the GroundBridge and a squadron of futuristic jet fighters led by a blue A-10 Thunderbolt II flew through and landed on the ship's upper deck before transforming as a group of footsoldiers pulled a large meteorite made of strange purple stone into the bridge for Megatron to see, as well as the robot that transformed from the Thunderbolt.

"Ah. Well done, Thundercracker," said Megatron. "Is this truly what we're after?"

"Indeed, my liege," said Thundercracker. "The solidified form of the matter the ancient texts knew as the Blood of Unicron the Destroyer. More commonly referred to as…"

"Dark Energon," said Megatron, ripping a crystal from the large stone.

"Legends say that this dark matter holds the power to… revive the dead," said Starscream.

"We require only a cadaver to be certain," said Megatron. "Is anyone here willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of science?"

"That may not be necessary, my lord," said Starscream. "If I may, I would like to show you something." Then he snapped his fingers and two guards pulled in the body of a small white Autobot. Megatron recognized him practically instantly.

"Tailgate. Recovered from Cybertron, no doubt," said Megatron as he walked through a quickly appearing GroundBridge, beaming him down to a large mining operation.

"Indeed. My men found him outside Darkmount. They believed he was trying to sneak in to terminate you and failed." said Starscream. "Shall we?"

"Indeed. Let's," said Megatron. Then he stabbed the crystal down into the husk's chest before it liquefied and caused the Autobot's husk to shudder and growl before it tore the guards apart. "Incredible. An Autobot, reduced to a mindless beast."

"I was thinking of calling them Terrorcons. Mindless savages, made only to destroy all in their paths," said Starscream before the Terrorcon ran towards him. Quickly, Megatron telescoped a blade out of his arm and slashed the bot clean in half at the waist, with the top half nearly falling off the ledge.

"There Starscream," said Megatron, replacing his blade. "Rise the unkillable seed of my army. The ultimate weapons in this war." The Terrorcon tried to attack Megatron, but he just kicked it off the ledge. "Once I learn to control the awesome power of Dark Energon." Starscream snickered and crossed his arms.


	4. Chapter 4

**Ch. 4: Back from the Dead**

Back at the Autobot Base, the girls were still talking to Optimus and his men when Red Alert's sensors started beeping. He checked them and what he saw shocked him.

"Impossible," he said. "Ratchet! Tailgate's life signal just came back online."

"Who's Tailgate?" asked Sunset.

"He was my old partner from the war," said Bumblebee. "Best racer I ever met. Even better sharpshooter."

"Well, what happened?" asked Fluttershy.

"It was during the attack on Darkmount, Megatron's citadel," said Bee. "We thought we were taking him by surprise, but he must've found out about the plan, 'cause he had guards at every door. The others and I managed to get out alive, but we lost hundreds of Sparks, Tailgate's included."

"I'm truly sorry," said Rarity.

"Thanks, kid," he replied. "But if his signal is back online, then he must've survived."

"But if that's true, then he must be stranded on Cybertron," said Ironhide.

"Didn't you guys leave any ships there?" asked Twilight.

"One or two, maybe," said Wheeljack. "But if the Decepticons remaining on Earth haven't already scavenged them for parts, the stasis systems are dead anyway."

"Well, that's the really weird part," said Red Alert. "According to these, Tailgate's on Earth."

"What?" asked Jazz.

"How is that possible?" asked Ratchet.

"It isn't," said Red Alert. "Probably just another bug. Ever since we got out of stasis, my systems have been chock-full of them."

"Optimus, if there's any chance Tailgate's alive… Even if it does just turn out to be a bug…" said Bumblebee. "Isn't it worth investigating?"

"Red Alert, enter Tailgate's coordinates into the GroundBridge and bring your medical kit," said Optimus. "Ratchet, prepare Sick Bay. We may require it later." Then a large metal face-plate slid up in front of Optimus's mouth and he turned to the GroundBridge rig.

"Hey!" said Pinkie. "What about us? What can we do?"

"Remain with Wheeljack and Ratchet," said Optimus.

"Aw!" said Pinkie sadly.

"Don't get him wrong," said Bumblebee. "We'd love to have you along, but if we get into a firefight, you might get in the way, and possibly get yourselves killed."

"Fair point," said Sunset. Then the GroundBridge opened and Optimus walked toward it with Ironhide, Bumblebee, Jazz and Red Alert behind him.

"Autobots, Transform and Roll Out!" he said, before they all transformed. Optimus into a Peterbilt 389 tractor trailer cab, and Red Alert into a Ford E-450 Super Duty ambulance before they all drove through the vortex.

"Y'know, now that we have a chance to chat, what the heck is this thing?" asked Applejack.

"A GroundBridge," said Wheeljack. "Basically, a scaled-down version of Cybertronian SpaceBridge transportation tech. Since we currently don't have the means or the Energon required for intergalactic travel…"

"You're trapped here. On Earth," said Twilight.

"With the likes of you, yes," said Ratchet angrily.

"Whoa. No need to get hostile, man," said Rainbow.

"Don't mind Ratchet. He just doesn't like you humans all that much," said Wheeljack. "But thankfully, Ratchet and I built the GroundBridge from spare parts to enable travel from here, to anywhere on the face of this planet."

"Amazing. So, it works for humans?" asked Rarity.

"Isn't that how you got here?" asked Wheeljack.

"So, you mean I could just shoot on over and visit my friend Gilda in Siberia?" asked Rainbow.

"Within astro-seconds," said Wheeljack. "Matter of fact, anyone up for a little sojourn?"

"Nah, I'm not in the mood," said Applejack, looking at her nails. "Hey, you guys got any human-sized artillery?"

"There should be some Mini-con rifles down that corridor," said Ratchet. "Third door on the left."

"Thanks man," said Applejack walking down the hall. On the other side of the vortex, the away-team jumped roared out and transformed, blasters ready. Ironhide looked around and was surprised.

"Decepticon Energon mine," he said impressed. "And a big one at that."

"Judging by its scale, the Decepticons have been tunneling here for quite a long time," said Optimus. Then Jazz heard something.

"Shh!" he quickly said and rolled over to take up position behind some rocks to see a battalion of Vehicon soldiers drilling at the Energon crystals with large drill rigs and their own hand-blasters. "Move up." he said quietly and the others moved behind him, just as impressed.

"Let's find Tailgate," said Optimus, pulling out his blaster. Bumblebee quickly flipped out his stingers and moved up.

"Hey! Slag-for-brains!" he yelled and started blasting, knocking down some of the soldiers. Quickly, the others pulled out their blasters and opened fire, one of them charging a drill at them.

"Take 'em down! Hard and fast!" said Ironhide, whacking the drill out of the way with a large hammer. Bumblebee charged down the tunnel, stingers burning white with plasma before he punched one of the men in the face with it and welded his head to face one way before he blew it off. Jazz quickly threw another sonic mine, disorienting the drill operator, which allowed him to steer it into the soldiers.

Back at base, Pinkie was getting curious. "What is this stuff anyway?" she asked, pointing at an old switchboard.

"Broken. No touchies," said Wheeljack. Pinkie was just moving her hand when… "Don't touch that either."

"Well, at least there's things in here we _can_ touch," said Applejack, slinging her new Energon rifle over her shoulder. Then an error message came up on Wheeljack's computer, making him groan.

"How come you guys are using human computers?" asked Twilight.

"Well, it isn't by choice, I can tell you that much," said the large mechanic. "It was left to us when the previous tenants abandoned this former missile silo. I mod stuff as I see fit." Then more error messages popped up. "Oh, gimme a break."

"I think I can fix that pretty easily," said Twilight, plugging her laptop into the computer.

"You sure? This is pretty complicated tech," said Wheeljack, chuckling. "I mean, it isn't a kid's toy." Twilight had already finished typing something.

"There we go," she said, closing her computer. "Try it now." Wheeljack turned back to the computer and saw that all the error messages were resolved and his calculations were back on screen.

"Huh," he said. "Not bad, kid."

"What can I say?" asked Twilight. "I'm a prodigy." Back in the mine, the Autobots smashed their way through more of the guards by both blasting them and running them over in vehicle mode. Soon enough, they were in the main pit and had hidden behind some large metal boxes. Jazz looked around at the size of the pit and whistled, obviously impressed.

"Quite the op they got here," he said. Unfortunately, one of the Decepticons started firing at the Autobots.

"Return fire!" called Optimus as they all pulled out their guns to shoot out the guards. On the main flagship, Megatron was admiring the large meteor of Dark Energon, now contained in a large canister.

"Blood of the great Unicron the Destroyer," he said staring at it longingly. "How might I fathom the eternal depths of your mystery, become worthy of wielding your awesome power?" Then a message came through on a terminal nearby.

"Lord Megatron," said Starscream. "My men have detected intruders in the mine's main pit."

"Optimus?" asked Megatron.

"So it seems," said the jet fighter.

"This is a rather inopportune time," said Megatron. "I need more time to prepare a proper reception for my old friend. Prepare the _Nemesis_ for departure. We leave immediately."

"But, Lord Megatron, the Energon the men have mined," said Starscream. "The Autobots will seize it."

"Then blow the mines to the AllSpark! And them along with it!" said Megatron angrily. Back in the pit, the firefight was still going on when Bumblebee noticed something out of the corner of his optic.

"Optimus, I have a visual on Tailgate," he said. "Red Alert and I can get to him, but we'll need cover fire."

"You'll have it. Go!" said Optimus.

"Yes sir," said Red Alert as he and Bumblebee ran out, with Ironhide blasting the guards closest to them. Then they transformed into vehicle mode to build up speed and quickly made the jump up to the level Tailgate was on. Then more fire came from higher up.

"Bumblebee, cover me!" said Red Alert. "I'll inspect the patient."

"Copy that," said Bumblebee, flipping out his stingers and sending bolts of plasma out at the guards. Quickly, Red Alert ran to Tailgate, but was immediately grossed out. Tailgate was dented and scratched horribly, and was leaking a strange purple liquid everywhere. Not to mention it looked like he had been cut in half. Then the panel he was on started to receive fire and fall.

"Tailgate!" called Bee as he jumped over and grabbed him. Red Alert quickly grabbed a pistol nearby and started firing. Quickly, Ironhide adjusted his aim and took them down as Bee started pulling Tailgate up.

"Hang on, buddy," he said. "We're getting you out of here." But then the husk looked up at him and growled like an animal, scaring Bumblebee into loosening his grip, allowing the husk to shake himself free and fall.

"No!" yelled Optimus. The husk bounced on another level before landing in a cluster of Energon spikes… with one shooting right through its chest, halting its movement.

"No…" groaned Bumblebee in anger and sorrow. Then the Autobots heard a cruel laughter from above. They looked and saw Starscream with a strange object in his hand.

"Good to see you again, Prime," he said.

"Starscream, you bastard, I swear I'll scrap you myself!" growled Bumblebee.

"Well, I'd stick around for you to do that, but I'm squeamish," said Starscream. Then he hit a switch on the object he was holding, causing it to start beeping before he dropped it, transformed into an F22A Raptor air superiority fighter jet and flew away after the ship, the object landing in a cluster of crystals.

"We got a Detpak, Prime!" yelled Ironhide. "The whole place is gonna blow!"

"In that case, I suggest we haul chassis," said Red Alert as he and Bumblebee jumped down nearby.

"Autobots, Transform and Roll Out!" yelled Optimus. Quickly, they all transformed and raced back down the tunnel just before the timer on the bomb hit zero, exploding and blowing the Energon nearby into an explosion of blue fire.

"Wheeljack, this is Bumblebee," he yelled over the comms. "Starscream just blew the mine! Bridge us back! Now!"

"Copy that," said Wheeljack. Quickly, the vortex opened in front of them and they all raced through, transforming back to Bot Mode and skidding to a stop just as the vortex closed.

"Whoa," said the girls.

"Bad-ass," said Sunset.

"Whew, talk about cutting it close," said Wheeljack before he noticed something. "Where's Tailgate?" Everyone looked down in pain at having seen what happened to the old Bot. Then Pinkie Pie jumped up.

"What was that explosion? Was there a fight?" she asked. "Can I come with you next time?!"

"Did you forget what happened last time I got into a fight with a Con?" asked Bumblebee angrily.

"Hey Pinkie, let's just leave the big bots to talk, okay?" said T-AI, pushing her away.

"Bumblebee, what did you see?" asked Optimus. Bee raised his visor and clenched his eyes.

"Not Tailgate. Not anymore anyway," he said, clenching his hands. "He was mutated. Butchered, like something from one of Shockwave's experiments during the war." Then his eyes rolled back a bit and he fell over onto a large crate. Quickly, Jazz zipped over and helped him up.

"Whoa, hey Bee, you okay?" he asked.

"Fine," groaned Bee. "Just feel kinda dizzy."

"We'd better run a medical scan, Ratchet," said Red Alert. Ratchet then came forward with a tool in hand, projecting a blue wave over Bumblebee, but it turned red once it got to his hand.

"Odd," he said. "What is this?" Red Alert quickly swapped out his right hand out for an Energon scalpel when he saw the purple residue on Bee's hand.

"Not sure," said Bee. "Tailgate was covered in the stuff, leaking it like there was no tomorrow." Red Alert scrapped the scalpel along Bee's hand, removing the residue.

"Go and take a decontamination bath. Now," he said. Jazz and Wheeljack carefully helped the large yellow bot over to the tub.

"Um, excuse me Optimus, I hate to bug you, but I can't get a signal on my cell phone," said Twilight, showing him her phone.

"A security precaution," said Optimus. "The walls of this silo are lined with lead, isolating any and all outside radio waves."

"Well, good call, but if I don't call my parents about three minutes ago, I'm pretty sure the police are gonna be out looking for me," she said.

"Have you broken a law?" asked Optimus.

"Yeah, curfew," said Rainbow, checking her watch. "It's after 10 PM."

"I'd better get home too," said Applejack. "Or Granny will never let me hear the end of it."

"Human customs," said Optimus thoughtfully. "I hadn't considered. But the issue of your safety remains. We do not have enough Autobots to go around for all of you as of now, but I can make some arrangements. Cliffjumper, Hound, Sunstreaker, step forward." Then a red Autobot with silver horns about Bumblebee's size walked out of the shadows, followed by a bot whose alternate mode was obviously a Jeep Wrangler, and a large gold Autobot.

"Yes sir," said the wrangler-bot. "What'll it be today?"

"You and the others are hereby tasked with protecting our human allies," said Optimus. "Cliffjumper, accompany Rainbow and Pinkie home."

"Awesome! Mom and Dad are gonna freak!" said Rainbow.

"And maintain covert surveillance in vehicle mode," finished Optimus.

"Aw man, we got curbside duty?" asked the red bot.

"Get used to it, Cliff," said Hound. "That's the way of intergalactic war. One minute you're sluggin' it out on the battlefield, the next you're some human's housekeeper."

"Whatever," said Cliffjumper as he transformed into a red Porsche 924 Turbo

"Hound, you'll watch over Applejack and Fluttershy," continued Optimus.

"Understood, sir," said Hound as he stepped over and transformed into a green Wrangler.

"Sunstreaker, take Rarity and Twilight," said Optimus.

"With pleasure, chief," said Sunstreaker as he transformed into a gold-painted supercharged Lamborghini Countach LP500S.

"Red Alert?" asked Optimus.

"Busy," said the medic, scanning Bumblebee as he got out of the bath.

"Bumblebee, you'll accompany Sunset," said Optimus. Bumblebee sighed dramatically.

"I think I'm still dizzy," he said.

"'You're fine!', says your physician," said Ratchet.

"Okay, fine." said Bumblebee as he transformed. Later that night, Sunset had driven Bumblebee to a small house on the west side of town, not far from CHS. Once out, she was relieved that she lived in a neighborhood that was basically empty.

"Hey Bee, really quick, I'm really sorry for your loss," she said.

"What could you possibly understand about loss?" growled Bumblebee.

"What, you think you're the only one in the galaxy with problems?" asked Sunset. Bee transformed and looked down at her angrily, given his large stature.

"I'm not sure guy trouble counts," he said.

"Well, I'm pretty sure my guy trouble started the moment the girls and I met you this morning," said Sunset, as she walked away. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm exhausted so I'm gonna go to bed."

"Whatever," said Bee as he transformed back into vehicle mode. "I'll be out here."

"Won't you get cold? I have a garage if you want," she said, pointing to the smaller building over on one side.

"No thanks," said Bee. "I have to stay out here to keep my optics peeled for Cons." The next morning, Bumblebee was revving his engine really loud, so Sunset had to run out to quiet him.

"Shh! Are you insane? You'll wake up the whole block!" she said.

"Get in and strap in," said Bumblebee. "Time to go."

"Ugh, isn't it Saturday?" asked Sunset.

"You can watch cartoons back at base with Cliffjumper, now let's go," said Bumblebee.

"Ugh, cartoons," scoffed Sunset. "I'm 18. Whatever." Back on the Decepticon Warship, Megatron was still watching the large canister the Dark Energon was inside, which was now unsealed.

"I don't think you'll need to worry about further interference from the Autobots, Lord Megatron," said Starscream. "Not with Optimus Prime reduced to scrap metal."

"And what knowledge do you possess to justify this fact?" asked Megatron.

"I blew the mines, as per your instructions," said Starscream.

"Optimus Prime is not easily defeated, Starscream," said Megatron. "We have millennia of war behind us to prove it."

"Perhaps you should take a break, my liege," said Starscream. "The crew has concerns that a Triple-Changer scan followed by prolonged exposure to Dark Energon may have unforeseen adverse effects on you."

"Or perhaps, Commander, I have not permitted myself contact _enough_!" shouted Megatron. Then as if to emphasize his point, he ripped a shard of Dark Energon from the large stone.

"Wait! Lord Megatron, don't!" cried Starscream. "Not the spark chamber! You have no clue what it might do!" Too little, too late. Megatron had already plunged the shard into his chest like a dagger, before it liquified and entered through the hole. He screamed out in pain as the dark matter flowed up to his brain. Back at the Autobot base, Ratchet and Red Alert were still running tests on the sample of Dark Energon from Bumblebee.

"Hmm. Fascinating," said Red Alert, moving away from the microscope. "The base elements of this slime are like nothing I've ever encountered. Have you ever seen anything like this, Ratchet?"

"No, but I can tell you one thing," said Ratchet, checking the readings. "It must be extremely concentrated to have affected Bumblebee so quickly." Then he grabbed a pair of large slide tongs. "Unfortunately, complete results are slow-coming without the use of proper diagnostic equipment."

"Oh yes, thank you very much for that by the way, Ironhide," groaned Red Alert. Then as Ratchet was moving the slide, a small drop of Dark Energon hit the broken equipment and melded into it. Then as the two medics had their backs turned, the equipment started twitching and before long, had transformed itself into a killer blade monster.


	5. Chapter 5

**Ch. 5: What?**

Out on the highway, Bumblebee was idling near a stop sign with Sunset in the driver's seat, hands on the steering wheel.

"Get ready to go, Sunset," the Autobot smirked before he straight-up floored it, roaring down the road and spooking Sunset.

"Sheesh. What's with you today, Bee?" she asked.

"Thought you might actually enjoy the ride if we weren't getting blasted," said Bumblebee.

"Oh, bring it on, you bucket of bolts," she smirked as they roared down the street. In another part of town, on an off-road course, Applejack and Fluttershy were sitting in Hound ready to ride.

"On your marks, get set…" said Fluttershy, trying to hide the fear in her voice.

"Girls, Optimus ordered that I protect you," reminded the Wrangler.

"Hound, we're strapped inside about five thousand pounds of metal," said Applejack, banging on his door. "I'd say we're protected, wouldn't you?"

"Eh. Whatever," said Hound as he put down the pedal and started bouncing, happy he'd scanned something with such good suspension. Out in the desert, Rainbow and Pinkie were playing against Cliffjumper in a racing game on his dashboard computer, which he promptly won.

"Aw come on!" yelled Rainbow, as she dropped the controller to her feet.

"Ten, zero, zero, I win again!" laughed Cliffjumper. Pinkie laughed.

"Cmon Cliff, no fair," she said. "You've been driving a lot longer than either of us." Out in Twilight's garage, she and Rarity were running experiments on Sunstreaker to try and understand Cybertronian biotechnology. Currently, they had the bot running on a dynamometer, trying to refine the Energon in some tech the Autobot had in his trunk.

"Just clocked in 160 mph, and we have about 300 ccs of liquid Energon ready for use," said Twilight, noting down the numbers on her clipboard. "That'll do it for now, Sunstreaker." The bot slowly eased to a stop and rumbled off the large wheels.

"Y'know, if you wanted to get to know how we Autobots tick, you could've just asked Ratchet," he asked, the insignia on his steering wheel blinking with every syllable.

"Well yes, we could have, but he's seemed rather busy lately," said Rarity. Back at base, Ratchet and Red Alert were indeed busy, testing the Dark Energon residue they found on Bumblebee.

"Thank Primus for peace and quiet, eh Ratchet?" asked Red Alert.

"Agreed," said the medic as he moved to the microscope. "Houseguests can be such a bother." Then they heard something clatter nearby. Red Alert freaked out and flipped his Energon scalpel.

"What was that?" he asked. They looked and saw a small tool on the floor. Red Alert walked over to it and picked it up. "It's just Wheeljack's frame welder."

"He'd never be careless enough to leave that out," said Ratchet. "Best out it back with his other tools."

"Agreed," said his pupil as he walked over to Wheeljack's station and put the welder with his other tools. Then he went back to Ratchet and went over more notes on his D-Pad. Then they heard a small metallic tapping noise. And it was close.

"Optimus? Is that you?" asked Ratchet. But then, Red Alert looked and gasped.

"Sweet Solus Prime!" he yelled. It was the blade monster that had formed from their smashed equipment. It leaped and attacked, but the medics quickly dodged, Red Alert flipping out his scalpel again and moving to slash at the beast, but it just cut through the microscope.

"I needed that!" growled Ratchet. It moved to attack again, but a plasma blast shot into the room and shot it out of the air to the ground. The medics looked and saw Optimus slinging his double-barreled ion blaster onto his back. The monster was just about to attack again when Red Alert impaled it with his scalpel.

"And stay broken," he said as it bled the purple solution. He powered down his scalpel and folded it away, letting the form fall to the ground. He let out a breath and looked at the others. "Now what in the name of Primus could've caused that?"

Optimus slid his mouth-plate down and looked at the young trainee. "I have a grave suspicion, Red Alert," he said, dipping his finger in the purple solution. "Dark Energon." Back on the _Nemesis_ , Megatron growled menacingly as the hole in his chestplate reformed itself. Starscream gave a strange chuckle.

"Lord… Megatron?" he asked.

"Tis as if the very lifeblood of Unicron the Destroyer flows through my veins," the large machine growled. "Almost as if… I can hear his very thoughts." Then he ripped another crystal from the stone. "I know now what I must do."

"And what may I do to assist you, my liege?" asked Starscream.

"Clear the runway, first off," said Megatron. "Then quit groveling and await my command." Once out on the large runway portion of the ship, Megatron transformed into a large Cybertronian jet and flew off. On the bridge, Starscream watched him fly off until Soundwave walked up behind him, along with his brothers, Skywarp and Thundercracker.

"Ah! I thought I told you not to do that, Soundwave," said Starscream.

"You seem concerned, brother," said Thundercracker. "What ails you?"

"Not so much what ails me, Thundercracker, but rather what ails Lord Megatron," said Starscream. "As you recall, he was the first to emerge from stasis, and still lightyears away from this planet. I only fear he may have come down with a bit of space madness. He has not been of sound judgment for several megacycles now. Increase global surveillance."

"But Starscream, do you not remember the master's orders?" asked Thundercracker. Then Soundwave's voice-box crackled.

"'-quit groveling and await my command'," he said in a voice exactly identical to Megatron's, if a bit echoed.

"Yes, yes, I heard him, Brother. I'm not deaf," Starscream said menacingly. "But if Optimus Prime does live, do you not think it would be in our master's best interests to ensure his enemy's destruction?"

"Fair point, Starscream," said Thundercracker. "I'll have the seeker drones scanning all available frequencies. Soundwave, dispatch Laserbeak. That should help."

"Affirmative," said Soundwave as he walked away.


	6. Chapter 6

**Ch. 6: Field Missions**

Back at base, Optimus and the medics had just sealed up the scrapped equipment in a canister out of the way.

"If the residue you and Bumblebee found on Tailgate, Red Alert, brought your broken equipment to life," said Optimus. "Then it would stand to reason that the very same substance brought Tailgate himself back from the dead."

"Well, that would account for his life signal coming back online the way it did, but c'mon Optimus," said Red Alert. "Dark Energon? It's so rare, we might as well have written it off as nonexistent in the first place. What is it doing on Earth?"

"It was transported by the Decepticons. For Megatron," said Optimus, looking out into the base.

"For what possible purpose?" asked Ratchet.

"To conquer this planet, and possibly others, by raising an army of undead Cybertronian warriors," said Optimus coldly. Red Alert laughed.

"Well, if that's the scheme, Megatron's gonna have to scrap more than a few microwaves," he said. "I mean, for the love of Sentinel Prime, where on this planet, let alone in this galaxy, would he find enough Cybertronian husks to overthrow us?" Just then, they heard engines revving outside and then the other Autobots roared in with the girls, who were all whooping excitedly about their ride over as the Bots transformed. Then Bumblebee heard something rumbling around inside him.

"Um, Sunset? I think you left something in the backseat," he said and he transformed back. Sunset stuck her head in and saw something.

"Ah, oh yeah, sorry," she said, pulling out her guitar. "I knew I forgot something."

"Autobots, prepare to…" began Optimus as the others readied their weapons.

"Roll out?" asked Bumblebee.

"Kick chassis?" asked Hound.

"Remain here," said Optimus. "Ratchet, you'll come with me. Red Alert, keep the analysis going with Wheeljack."

"Yes sir," said the medic as he went looking for their mechanic.

"We'll be outside communications range for quite some time," said Optimus. "So until then, I'm placing Ironhide in charge."

"Won't let you down, sir," Ironhide saluted.

"Jazz, what about you?" asked Applejack. "You look more prepped for this sort of duty."

"Nah, Ironhide outranks me," said Jazz. "He was a top-ranking general in the war. I'm just a Wrecker. Special Forces officer."

"With all due respect, Optimus," said Bumblebee. "Playing bodyguard is one thing, housesitting's another, even with someone like Ironhide in charge. No offense, big guy."

"None taken, kid," said Ironhide, spinning his Gatling gun.

"Bee's right, Prime," said Sunstreaker. "Besides, Ratchet hasn't been out in the field since the war."

"My pistons may be rusty, but my audio receptors are sharp as ever!" Ratchet growled from the other side of the base.

"For the moment, it's only reconnaissance," said Optimus in a strict tone.

"Then why does your voice sound sharper than your ax?" asked Bumblebee.

"Bumblebee, as I'm sure you are most aware, much has changed over the course of the last solar cycle. And we all need to adapt," said Optimus. "Wheeljack, I've already entered coordinates into the GroundBridge. If you would?"

"Absolutely sir," said Wheeljack as he pulled the lever and the vortex roared to life. Once it was open, Optimus and Ratchet walked through and disappeared.

"Alright big guy, so what do we have planned for today?" asked Rainbow, brushing some dirt off her shoes.

"Bee, take the others and go out on patrol," said Ironhide.

"But Prime told us to stay," said Hound.

"When you're boss, you get to call the shots," said Ironhide. "Now get going."

"Yes sir!" the others saluted, transformed and roared away out the tunnel nearby.

"Alright, so what do you guys wanna do now?" asked Wheeljack, reorganizing his equipment.

"How about we get some training in?" asked Rainbow.

"What kind of training?" asked Rarity.

"Any kind will work. Powers, band, heck I'd settle for learning how to shoot," said Rainbow.

"I can definitely help you there," said Ironhide. But just then, as Sunset was plugging her guitar into an amp nearby, the alarm from their first time started blaring. Then T-AI materialized nearby.

"Proximity sensor's going off. Agent Fowler's on his way," she said.

"Quick! Hide!" yelled Red Alert. Quickly, they all ducked behind the large crates nearby just as Fowler came down in the elevator.

"Prime!" he yelled angrily.

"Good to see you too, Fowler," said Ironhide. "Sorry to say Optimus is out on business. Only ones here are me, Wheeljack, Red Alert and T-AI."

"Well then, where is he?" asked Fowler. Where the girls were hiding, Rarity started sniffing from the dust. "Wait. Don't tell me. He's out pancaking a mini-mall." Then Rarity started stuttering like she was about to sneeze. "Now, I don't know what language you bots speak on your planet, but Prime promised you would handle the Decepticons, and blowing a crater in the middle of Nebraska is not what 'handle' means in English." Pinkie quickly stopped Rarity from sneezing before she could give them away. "So you tell Prime-"

"AH-CHOOOO!" Pinkie sneezed loudly, the sound echoing through the base.

"Since when do you bots get sick?" asked Fowler suspiciously.

"Well, no turning back now," said Rainbow. "We've been exposed." She and the others slowly stood up, hands above their heads. "Hey. How ya doin'?"

"Contact with civilians?! Really?!" asked Fowler. "You bots have really gone off-book this time. Wait, don't tell me. You're abducting them for experiments."

"That's more Shockwave's speed, Fowler," said Wheeljack. "And he defected to Megatron's side long before we Autobots launched from Cybertron."

"Besides, I'm pretty sure you recognize us," said Applejack. "We're the girls who saved the city from those Sirens a while back, remember?"

"What?" whispered Ironhide.

"Long story, we'll explain later," Sunset whispered back.

"Well, you do look familiar, but I still don't think that was you," said Fowler. Rainbow looked around and realized he was talking about Twilight. She looked nothing like her counterpart from when the Sirens attacked.

"Uh well, that's just because Twilight got glasses," she said. "Uh Twilight, put your contacts back on." Twilight was surprised.

"How'd you know I had contacts?" she whispered.

"Lucky guess, now put them on before he sees through it," Rainbow whispered back.

"Oh yeah, gotcha," said Twilight, taking her glasses off and slipping contact lenses into her eyes, making her look more like her counterpart. "See?" Then they all posed.

"Oh yeah," said Fowler, walking down to them. "I can see it now. Either way, I'm taking you all into federal custody. It's for your own protection." Ironhide just let the muzzle of his acid gun fall in front of him, blocking him off from the girls.

"We're protecting them," he said strictly. "And if you've got a problem with that, you can take it up with Optimus when he gets back."

"Really?" asked Fowler, moving to a phone-stand nearby. "And what's to stop me from reporting you all to my superiors at the Pentagon?"

"Well, for starters, you can't use that phone," said Wheeljack, moving away from his terminal. "It's out of order. I've been meaning to get it fixed for weeks now, but I just haven't gotten around to it." And he was right. When Fowler picked up the phone, he didn't get a single sound, even when he tried putting in numbers. He growled and hung up.

"This isn't over, ya bucket of bolts," he said walking back up to the elevator. "Not by a long-shot." Then the elevator doors closed and Applejack walked up to the phone.

"This thing can't be out of order," she said, looking at it. "I just called Granny to let her know how I was doin' a little while ago, and it worked fine."

"It did until I cut the connection to it from here," said Wheeljack, punching something in on his computer. Then Applejack got a dial tone on it. She chuckled and hung up, looking back at him.

"Nice," she said.

"Optimus is never gonna let me hear the end of it for that," said Ironhide, slinging his acid gun onto his back. Out in a canyon system far away from the base, Optimus and Ratchet were walking through the thick mist in one of the many gulches.

"All due respect, Optimus, but what do we hope to find here?" asked Ratchet.

"The site of the largest Cybertronian battlefield in this sector," said Optimus. "Predating even us."

"On _Earth_?! You must be joking," said Ratchet, waving him off.

"Do you recall the period in the war which led to Sentinel Prime's death, when both sides started hiding their Energon spoils on other planets?"

"Naturally," said Ratchet. "It's the very reason why Energon deposits even exist on planets like these, and why we came here in the first place."

"It is also the reason why battle came to be waged on planets such as this one," said Optimus. "And I fear Megatron's memory is as long as history itself." Back at base, Fowler was just taking off in his helicopter and flying away. Once he was far enough away from the base, he turned on a radio.

"General Bryce," said the voice on the other end.

"Agent Fowler, sir," said Fowler. "We have a situation. I'm en route from Autobot HQ. I'll brief you in person momentarily. Over."

"Copy that, Fowler," said Bryce. "I look forward to hearing about it. Over." Unfortunately, the general wasn't the only one who had heard them. Soundwave had pinged off one of the Decepticons' seeker drones and relayed it to Starscream.

"Autobot HQ, eh?" asked the commander and scoffed. "Humans—Always the weak link. Soundwave, have Laserbeak fetch me this Fowler, so that he may brief us instead."

"Affirmative," said Soundwave, reaching up to his sonic cannon. "Laserbeak, eject." Then a large block resembling a flash drive fell from his back before transforming into a large robotic condor. "Operation: Abduction." Laserbeak screeched in confirmation and flew to the source of the signal on rockets built into his back. Then the radar in Fowler's helicopter picked up on something big headed toward him.

"Watch it, Big Bird," he said. "I've got right of way out here." Then Laserbeak flew out in front of him and screeched. "What in Uncle Sam's beard?!" Quickly, Fowler swooped up to avoid the mini-con and growled. "Great. First, the freeways aren't safe, now air travel?" Laserbeak was still on Fowler's tail, but he quickly turned the tables putting himself behind the large bird.

"You wanna dance, Decepti-creep?" he asked, readying his copter's machine gun. "I'll lead!" Then he pulled the trigger and bullets started flying. But the armor-piercing ammo barely even scratched the Decepticon's plating. After a while, he ran out of ammo and Laserbeak swooped up. Fowler was confused until the large bird bit the tail of his copter clean off. "Never an Autobot around when ya actually need one!" He was losing altitude fast, and Laserbeak took the opportunity to land on the cockpit and try to pull him out. Finally, the con got a grip on his jacket collar and pulled him out, just as he pressed a red button in the cockpit. Then Laserbeak flapped up and let the copter crash before flying away. Back at base, the alarms were going insane as Twilight and Wheeljack hurried to the computers.

"Someone turn that racket off!" yelled Rarity, plugging her ears.

"It's an SOS signal," said Twilight. "From Fowler, no less." She and Wheeljack tried what they could, but the screens just went to static.

"Well? Anything?" asked Rainbow.

"Looks like the location scan didn't have time to finish," said Wheeljack.

"Ah well," said Ironhide.

"Sorry, 'ah well'?" asked Sunset. "Really?"

"What? Fowler's an asshole," said Ironhide.

"Whoa!" said Rainbow. "Whether you like the guy or not, the Decepticons might have taken him prisoner."

"And Agent Fowler knows your location," said Fluttershy before giving a concerned gulp. " _Our_ location."

"And did we not just witness how fast Fowler backs down from a 'Bot? The 'Cons are totally gonna make him squeal!" said Pinkie.

"But we lost the transmission," said Wheeljack. "For all we know, they could have him on the moon or something like that." Then Spike snapped his toes like fingers.

"I got it. Twilight, remember that thing we read about nine years ago about the government microchipping their agents like you did with me?" he asked, pulling on his collar to reveal a small blinking microchip in the fabric.

"Oh yeah, that's right," said Twilight, going back to her computer. "So if I can hack into the government mainframe, we might be able to track him."

"Hacking the government?" asked Rarity. "Isn't that illegal?"

"Immensely," said Twilight. "But unless anyone else has any better ideas, this is what we're going with."

"I have one idea," said Pinkie.

"For the last time, Pinkie, we're not doing the hornet-cannon-net thing," said Twilight.

"Can I at least wear the mustache?" she asked, zipping up with a fake mustache on.

"No," said Twilight, ripping the mustache off.

"OW!" yelled Pinkie, grabbing her lip. Back on the _Nemesis_ , Laserbeak had just dragged Fowler to a small room in the hold of the ship in front of Starscream.

"Excellent work, Laserbeak," said the commander. "Welcome aboard, Agent Fowler."

Fowler pushed himself up off the ground and brushed himself off. "I take it you're Megatron. You treat all your guests this nice?" Starscream chuckled.

"I'm afraid Lord Megatron is away for the day," he said. "I am his second-in-command, Wing Commander Starscream. And any friend of the Autobots…"

"Autobot? What's that, one of those new coin-operated 'wash my own car' places?" asked Fowler innocently.

Starscream smirked. "Oh, so we're going to play it like that, are we?" he asked. "Apparently Laserbeak neglected to tell you that I have no appreciation of humanoid humor. Skywarp, make our guest comfortable."

"I intend to, brother," said the stealth fighter as he walked into the light. Back at base, Twilight had just isolated the coordinates from Fowler's chip.

"Got him," she said. "39 degrees, 5 minutes east latitude; 116 degrees, 9 minutes north longitude. Entering coordinates into GroundBridge computer now."

"Coordinates received," said T-AI, going over the numbers. "Activating GroundBridge." Then the levers near the rig lowered and the vortex opened.

"Boys, you're coming with me," said Ironhide. "I'm pretty sure Fowler's gonna need a medic after we get him out from behind 37 layers of bulletproof everything. Everybody else, wait here. Twilight, you're in charge. Let's roll out." Then they all transformed, with Wheeljack turning into a Dodge Ram 4500 Heavy Duty tow truck before they all drove through the vortex and it closed.

"Well, I guess the eight of us have the run of the place then," said Spike. Then Twilight looked around.

"Uh, Applejack? Pinkie?" she asked. The others looked and saw the two of them were gone. Then the three Autobots drove out of the vortex on the other side, transformed and readied their weapons.

"Fowler?! You out there?!" asked Ironhide. Then Wheeljack looked in one direction.

"Oh boy," he said. "Quick, get down." Then he ushered everyone behind a large rock nearby the _Nemesis_. The coordinates were too exact and the three of them were right next to…

"The whole Decepticon shebang," said Ironhide. "Perfect." Red Alert quickly lowered his medical visor and scanned the area.

"I count about 30 Vehicon sentries on the perimeter, twelve on the main deck of the ship," he said. "I can't get a reading of inside though, must be shielded or something. How should we proceed?"

"Yeah," said a voice. "What's the plan?" The bots looked and saw Applejack and Pinkie Pie nearby, hiding behind another rock.

"What are you doing here?" asked Wheeljack.

"Well, it wasn't my idea, I can tell ya that much," said Applejack. Just then…

"Hey! You!" called a Vehicon nearby, leveling his blaster.

"Scrap," said Ironhide, combining his grenade launcher and acid cannon into a large hammer. "Guess we're doing this the hard way. Get down!" Then he spun his minigun and shot the sentry away as the girls rolled away. The guard then charged the large bot and slashed him with a bayonet. He blocked it the second time with his hammer and punched the guard into the ground. Then Applejack saw a chance to help and touched her geode.

"Hold him still!" she growled and grabbed the sentry's faceplate, bending the metal with her grip, making the guard scream in pain. Then she threw him behind a rock, leaving prints in his faceplate. "Now listen well pal, and lemme tell ya how this is gonna work; I'm gonna ask you one question. You are gonna answer that question in a way I find satisfactory, and if you do not, I'll rip your head off with my bare hands and punt it into Megatron's face, you hear me?"

"Is that the question?" asked the sentry.

"No," said Applejack. "Now here it comes; Where are you Cons keeping the human agent you captured?"

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," said the Con. "There is no human agent."

"Wrong answer," said Applejack as she cracked her knuckles and touched her geode, but she didn't feel the usual strength burst. She tried again, but got the same result, making the Con laugh.

"What, you think that's funny, bolt-brain?" asked Ironhide.

"To hell with you, the Autobots and everyone else on this planet!" yelled the Con. Then Applejack felt her strength coming back.

"Oh yeah! There we go!" she said and grabbed the con's face. Then she started pulling, making him scream in pain.

"Okay, okay, okay, okay! OKAY!" he yelled in fear and pain. "Okay, I'll tell you, dammit!" That prompted Applejack to stop pulling, but she didn't move her hand. "What do you want to know?"

"The human agent, where the hell is he?!" yelled Applejack, getting impatient.

"He's onboard," said the sentry. "Down on the lowest level, in the brig. But you'll never make it. There are guards all over the ship. With orders to shoot intruders on sight. And soon they'll find me here. And then you will all be on your knees before Megatron!"

"Not if they don't find you alive!" said Applejack and she pulled so hard, she ripped the con's head off, sparks flying from broken wires and Energon spilling from pipes.

"Whoa," said Pinkie in awe.

"How in the name of Unicron did you do that?" asked Wheeljack amazed.

"Well, my scans don't detect any genetic tampering. She hasn't been messing with my equipment, that's good to know," said Red Alert. "But for some reason, I'm getting a very strong energy signature from her. And from Pinkie."

"Must be the geodes," said Applejack. "It's kind of a long story, but let's just say us and the other girls can handle the front lines in this war."

"Good, but we're gonna have to call it in," said Ironhide. "Bumblebee, this is Ironhide. Do you read?"

"Comin' through loud and clear, Ironhide," said Bee. "How copy, over?"

"We have a bit of a situation," said Ironhide.

"Cmon, big guy," said Jazz. "They're kids. Humans. Just… do whatever." Then after hearing what he had to say, everyone stopped.

"You're _where_?!" asked Bee. " _They're_ where?!" Back at base, the others were still staring at the GroundBridge.

"What are we gonna do? Ironhide might not have even realized they followed his squad through," said Rainbow.

"Pinkie doesn't care about what the Cons can do, she just wants the thrill," said Sunset. "Please tell me we still have those last coordinates."

"Thankfully, we do," said Twilight. "Their destination's still locked into the Bridge's computer."

"Alright then," said Sunset. "T-AI, rev up the bridge and send us out. Get the others on the coms and have them meet us at those coordinates ASAP."

"Understood. Powering up GroundBridge now," said T-AI. The switches dropped, and the vortex roared to life. Quickly, the girls ran through to the coordinates.

"Bumblebee to HQ, come in," said the communicators.

"This is T-AI, go ahead," she said.

"We need a bridge back to base," said Bee. "How long will it take?"

"I'm afraid that's a no-can-do," said T-AI. "I just reopened the bridge to Ironhide's coordinates, and if I recalibrate it to you, I risk losing the connection. You'll have to come back the long way."

"Fine then," said Bumblebee. "All units, metal to the pedal. Back to base." Bee and his team quickly floored it and drove back to the silo as fast as they could. Back on the _Nemesis_ , Fowler was hanging in the middle of his cell by chains with Starscream walking around him.

"Agent Fowler," he said. "I have one single request that will save your family the pain of grieving…" Then he slid a small blade out of one of his fingers and pointed it at his neck. "Tell me the location of the Autobot base."

"Well, two things;" said Fowler. "One; I don't actually have much of a family these days. Two; sure thing. But I got a favor to ask first."

"I'm listening," said Starscream.

"I got a bit of an issue with the customer service here," Fowler joked. "Can I speak to the manager?" Starscream growled in anger.

"I already told you, I make the decisions around here. _I_ am in charge!" he yelled. Then he turned to Thundercracker. "Bring the prod."

"Are you certain, brother? We're not sure of the effect Energon will have on organic nervous systems," said Thundercracker.

"Then we will experiment in the place of Shockwave," said his brother. "Now go get the prod." Outside…

"What's taking so long with that back-up?" asked Wheeljack, pulling out a small machine gun.

"Who knows? But they could be torturing Fowler in there right now," said Applejack. "Let's just charge on and save him."

"I like how you think, kid," said Ironhide, loading his guns. "And if you were in my unit in the war, you would've been given several hundred commendations to be a military strategist for Optimus. But we need to wait for backup." Then the GroundBridge opened nearby.

"Ah. Bout time," said Red Alert, scoping out the area. But he was scared when instead of back-up, the other girls came through.

"Oh great," said Ironhide. "More easy targets."

"Whoo!" said Rainbow, shaking her head. "That's seriously gonna take some getting used to."

"Ugh. Well, at least we made it…" said Twilight. "To the doorstep of the Decepticon army- This was a huge mistake."

"You there!" yelled another guard up on the main deck.

"Scrap," said Ironhide's team. Back in the brig, Starscream was getting antsy as he brandished a special tool.

"I ask nicely one more time," he said. "The Autobot base!"

"Sure thing, tin-head," said Fowler. "Right after you kiss my star-spangled ass!" Starscream growled as he switched the tool on with a current of Energon-powered electricity and touched it to Fowler, making him scream in pain.

"As I imagined," said Starscream. "Take notes of his reactions, Thundercracker. If we ever find Shockwave, he will like this information."

"Understood, brother," said Thundercracker, typing on a D-pad. Back in the canyon system, a mist had settled and Optimus and Ratchet had found what they were looking for; a huge area of the gorge filled with the fuselage of long-dead Cybertronian soldiers.

"For the first time in my existence, Optimus," said Ratchet, unsettled by the sight. "I had hoped you were wrong."

"I share the same sentiment, old friend," said Optimus. Then a large gray M1A2 Abrams main battle tank rolled up on the cliff above and transformed into Megatron.

"Optimus, old friend," he said. "I trust you've been well? I see you've brought your trusty watchdog with you. Funny. I was certain he would be convalescing in a junkheap by now."

"Why not invite your old friend down here for a chat?" asked Ratchet angrily, cracking his knuckles.

"I know why you're here, Megatron," said Optimus.

"Hardly a surprise, Optimus," said the Decepticon. "After all, the two of us have been at each other's sparks since the beginning of this war. And your time fighting in it has come to an end!" Then he raised a shard of Dark Energon and shot it into the ground below, letting it spread and infect the metal around it. Megatron could feel the power of his soldiers in his spark and smiled.

"Rise, my warriors!" he yelled. And rise they did, from the ground they once called home.

"By the AllSpark," said Ratchet in fear and amazement. The undead warriors rose to face the Autobots, using old rusted blades and powered-down blasters as weapons.

"Behold, Optimus Prime!" yelled Megatron. "The true power of Dark Energon!" The soldiers marched forward ready to attack, but Optimus and Ratchet stood their ground.


	7. Chapter 7

**Ch. 7: Raids**

The undead Terrorcons limped and lumbered toward the two Autobots, disgusting Ratchet.

"Megatron has desecrated the resting place of our fallen comrades," he growled. "And his own."

"Not even the fallen are free from his war-mongering," said Optimus. On the ridge, Megatron could feel the power of his soldiers flowing through him, in complete harmony.

"At last," he said. "Symbiosis. I feel it; a complete control over my Terrorcon warriors." Then he raised his fist in an ordering position. "Obliterate them!" The Terrorcons charged the two but Optimus quickly pulled out his ion blaster, split it down the middle into two and set them for the highest power level, blasting several of them to try and keep them back, but the blasts did little more than anger them.

"Ratchet, retreat!" he ordered. "Have T-AI bridge you back to base!"

"Negative," said Ratchet, sliding two large blades out of his forearms. "I will stand with you, Optimus Prime. After all, you may require a medic when all this is over with."

"Very well then, old friend," said Optimus as the two charged. Then as Ratchet chopped one of their arms off, he saw the Dark Energon inside it depower, reducing it to an empty shell of scrap metal again, which gave him an idea.

"I would prescribe vivisection!" he said, chopping another enemy open. "The smaller the fuselage, the less powerful it becomes!"

"Sound advice, old friend," Optimus smirked under his mask, flipping his blasters around into large handles with blocks on the ends, from which Energon-powered ax blades shot out. Then he charged in, slashing and disemboweling the Terrorcons, allowing the two to gain some ground.

"Fight all you want, Optimus," bellowed Megatron. "I have mastered the power of Dark Energon. When you fall, old friend, you too shall join my army."

"We'll see about that," said Optimus as he and Ratchet continued their charge. Back at the _Nemesis_ , the Vehicon guards had opened fire on the others.

"Cover!" yelled Sunset. Quickly, Rarity used her powers to energize gem shields, blocking most of the blasts, and allowing them to retreat behind a rock.

"This cover isn't gonna last long," said Twilight. "We need to get outta here!"

"Gotcha covered," said Red Alert as he drove up and opened his back door. "Get in. Now!" The girls quickly obliged before the doors closed. "Ironhide, cover me!"

"On it!" yelled the general firing his weapons at the enemies, drawing their fire long enough for Red Alert to retreat back to them.

"Thanks, guys," said Sunset.

"What are you doing here anyway?" asked Wheeljack.

"We came for the others," said Sunset, noticing them nearby. "'Why did they come here?' is the real question of the day."

"Pinkie," said Applejack simply.

"Thought so," said Twilight.

"Wait a second," said Red Alert, scanning the others. "Applejack was right; the others are all radiating the same energy as them."

"You mean our powers?" asked Rainbow. "Uh yeah, this is gonna be easy." She grasped her pendant and felt her speed run to her legs. "I'll take these." Then she zipped off, just before Ironhide noticed something.

"Did she just take my Mini-Con sidearm?" he asked.

"Yep," said Wheeljack, checking the kit he brought with him. "Along with all my DetPacks."

"What'n the hay is she up to?" asked Applejack.

"Do you really have to ask?" asked Sunset as they saw her zipping around the battlefield, planting explosives all over the ship, one or two on a large dish on the main deck. She nearly got hit a few times, but she quickly returned fire with her blaster before she took off back to cover.

"Okay, I'm done," she said. "Where's the detonator?"

"Right here," said Wheeljack, placing a large dummy-stick on the ground near them. "Plus, you might want these." Then he passed out sets of headphones for all the girls before they took cover and put them on.

"Fire in the hole!" said Applejack, pushing the button on the dummy-stick, detonating the charges on the ship, blasting several of the guards to scrap, littering the field. "Yee-haw!"

"Now that's what I'm talkin' about!" said Ironhide. "Alright, let's move in!" Quickly, they did so, even bringing the girls with them on board the ship. Unfortunately, they found themselves surrounded by different hallways.

"Now what?" asked Sunset.

"Split up," said Wheeljack, handing out small chips and sidearms. "Plug the chips into your phones and they'll connect you to our comlink system. Anyone find out where they're keeping Fowler, call it in."

"Alright, let's move out," said Ironhide as they scattered. Finally, Rarity found a pair of guards nearby and listened in on what they were saying.

"You hear that human scream?" one asked. "I honestly feel kinda bad for him."

"Well, as long as I don't get called down to brig duty, I'm happy," said the other. Rarity smirked as she had heard enough, and quickly went for her phone. Unfortunately, she had forgotten to set it for silent and it was at that time that she got a call from her sister, blaring her ringtone. Needless to say, the guards noticed and were provoked. "Hey!" But their attack was cut short by a large burst of electricity frying them both and sending them both to the ground. Rarity looked and was more than happy to see Bumblebee and Sunstreaker.

"Nice work clearing the door, but I doubt storming the Decepticon warship was what Ironhide had in mind for you guys," said Bee.

"Well, I didn't exactly have much of a choice," said Rarity as she pulled out her phone again. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to take this call." Quickly she did, telling her sister she just had to attend to some last-minute errands before she could pick her up and hung up. "Okay, I'm done. Now let's go." Quickly they left, Rarity on Sunstreaker's shoulders as they reached an intersection, where Bumblebee heard something. Quickly, he flipped out his stinger and saw Ironhide with his minigun ready.

"Friendly!" he said.

"Hello," said Ironhide, as they both put away their weapons.

"You brought the humans, general?" asked Sunstreaker incredulously.

"Not my call," said Ironhide. "They're fairly stubborn. Good news is they're good in a fight."

"Whatever," said Bumblebee. "Look, let's just get Fowler and get outta here."

"Thankfully, I found he's in the brig," said Rarity. "Problem; I don't know where it is."

"I do," said Twilight as she rode up with Wheeljack. "I hacked a terminal back there and pulled up some schematics for the ship. Brig's in the lowest sector."

"Alright, let's move," said Ironhide as they ran out. "Where are the others?"

"Securing the perimeter," said Bee. "Jazz is around here somewhere." Meanwhile, in the brig, the torture was still going on, but as the others had gotten in a firefight, the blaster-fire was getting annoying for Starscream.

"Will someone please go see what's going on out there?" he asked. One of the Vehicon guards quickly left only to find himself blasted essentially point-blank with a blast from Sunstreaker's heat ray as the others were blasted to scrap metal.

"There," said Wheeljack, cocking his weapon after reloading it. "That's the last of them for now. Now let's go save Fowler." Back in the canyon, Optimus and Ratchet were still fighting the Terrorcons, with Optimus switching one of his axes back to blaster mode, but keeping the blade as a bayonet, but they were slowing down.

"Optimus, this prolonged Dark Energon exposure is sapping our power," said Ratchet. "I don't know how much longer we can go."

"We cannot falter now," said Optimus. "Keep fighting." But what they had left wasn't enough; they were both over-run with Ratchet getting his left door ripped off his arm before the Terrorcons dogpiled them. Megatron chuckled cruelly at the display before an explosion echoed from Optimus' location, blasting all the Terrorcons away, but revealing he had detonated a grenade on his torso to get them off, making his chest leak a bit. But regardless, he soldiered on, slashing and blasting all the Terrorcons away. Then he went over to Ratchet and growled as he crushed one of the Terrorcons' heads in his fist, shoved another grenade into its body and threw it away before it blew up, sending shrapnel through several others, including some of the ones on Ratchet, the rest of which Optimus punched, skewered or blasted away.

"Are you okay, Ratchet?" he asked, helping his friend up.

"I'll live," said the medic, holding his arm. "But this is going to be hard to replace."

"Just rest," said Optimus, securing him in a cave nearby. "I'll handle this." Megatron chuckled further.

"Even after all these years, Optimus," said Megatron. "Still at the top of your game. But not enough. Finish him, my soldiers!" Megatron still slashed through the enemies, not even slowing down.

Back on the _Nemesis_ , guards on the bridge were still on patrol when a grenade rolled in. Then it blew up and blasted all of them to scrap before Sunstreaker rolled in, securing the place.

"Clear!" he said allowing the others entrance.

"Girls, stay here and secure it as best you can," said Ironhide. "We'll get Fowler."

"Why not let them come with, Ironhide?" asked Wheeljack. "They're more than proven themselves."

"Maybe, but even with their powers, they're easy targets," said Ironhide. "They should be fine in here, as long as no more guards show up." The Autobots walked off and left the girls to secure the room. Looking around, Rainbow saw something on a large console near a downed guard.

"Hey Twilight," she said. "This seems important. Should I trash it?" Twilight walked over and looked the numbers on the console over several times, running it over in her head.

"No," she said. "This is important intel." Finally, down in the brig, the door opened revealing a Vehicon.

"Well?" asked a slightly livid Starscream. But the guard just fell to reveal Sunstreaker who melted the other guard in the room to slag.

"Hi," he said before he and the others moved in, weapons hot.

"Hands where we can see 'em, Starscream!" said Ironhide, but Starscream just aimed one of his blasters at Fowler, who was currently in a sort of daze from the Energon exposure.

"One more move and he dies," he said. Then he felt a tapping on his head. He looked up and saw Jazz in the rafters, pistol ready.

"I wouldn't," he said.

"Oh, but I might," said Starscream. Back on the bridge, Twilight had run the numbers over in her head and knew it was too important to leave without.

"We have to get this back to base," she said.

"What makes you think it isn't just a recipe for space nachos?" asked Pinkie, suddenly hungry.

"Trust me," said Twilight. "I know math when I see it. And this equation is so complex, I almost don't know where to begin."

"Think we can download it?" asked Sunset.

"Well, I have a Flash drive and an external hard drive, but this tech is too alien for them to work," said Twilight, looking over the console. Then Applejack saw a guard coming in.

"Well, we better get it written down or something, cause we got company," she said. Quickly, Pinkie pulled her phone out, took a picture of the numbers and they all took cover. The guard was surprised to see the guards all down and a scorch mark in the middle of the floor, but even more surprised when he felt something fall onto his back.

"Huh?!" he asked.

"Surprise!" said Pinkie as she handed him a present and ran off. The guard was confused, but then Pinkie jumped out of the box with a cupcake. "Double surprise!" Then she splatted the cupcake in the guards' face, before it exploded, blowing his faceplate off and sending him to the floor.

Back in the brig, all the Cybertronians were currently engaged in what was quite possibly the most intense Mexican standoff in history.

"Now, if you'll excuse me," said Starscream. "Agent Fowler and I will take our leave." Fowler, still basically trippin' balls from the Energon torture, just said something completely random.

"Okay, we're done here," said Sunstreaker, firing his weapon which melted part of Starscream's blaster. The commander stumbled back, clutching his arm in pain as all the others opened fire on him. Finally, Starscream managed to get the auto-repair nanites most Cybertronians used for these situations onto his arm and transformed, his thruster aimed right at Jazz.

"Oh scrap!" he said just before he was blasted away by the jet flying off. Ironhide and Sunstreaker quickly opened fire after him but couldn't land a shot.

Knowing more guards would be on the way, the girls quickly ran out of the bridge. But unfortunately, they didn't think about the patrol coming down the hall right that second until it was right on top of them. That was when the guards were hit with a Hummer, which quickly transformed into Ironhide and knocked the guards down the next hall with one swing of his hammer.

"Whoo! Home run!" he said. The girls looked at him weirdly after that. "What? So I take in a drive-in every now and then. Sue me." Then he transformed back and drove up along with the others.

"I thought we told you to stay put," said Bumblebee.

"What can I say?" asked Sunset, boarding her bot with Fluttershy. "Guess we just don't listen."

"Look, we can foot blame later," said Rainbow as she, AJ and Pinkie boarded Ironhide and the others jumping into Sunstreaker. "Right now, we gotta go!" The bots quickly obliged and drove off.

"I take it you found Fowler?" asked Twilight.

"I like pie," someone said over the coms. "Can we stop for pie?"

"Does that answer your question?" asked Red Alert.

"What's his deal?" asked Rainbow.

"Apparently Energon and organic nervous systems don't mix," said Red Alert. "I'll get him sedated and we'll be good as gold back at base." He quickly did so, knocking Fowler out just as the bots escaped the ship.

"T-AI, we've got Fowler," said Ironhide. "We need a GroundBridge back to base."

"Understood," said T-AI. "Cycling up the bridge now." In the gorge, Optimus had finally slashed his way through Megatron's hordes with the psychotic overlord watching and giving a condescending slow clap at the spectacle.

"Bravo, Optimus," he said. "Although this is naught but a prologue. You may wish to save your strength for the main event." Optimus just brushed it off and used his axes as climbing claws to pull himself up the ridge.

"You will never prevail, Megatron," he groaned, weakened to panting by the Dark Energon and his gaping chest wound. "Not so long as Energon still flows through my veins."

"Befitting, really," said Megatron as Optimus reached the top. "For it is _Dark_ Energon which pumps through mine." Optimus tried to go in for a slash, but Megatron dodged, went into jet-mode and flew off, Optimus firing after him, but none of his shots connecting. He soon went back to Ratchet, collected his broken door and the two helped each other back to base, occasionally glancing back at the gorge of fuselage and Dark Energon mist.

"If that wasn't Megatron's endgame, then what is?" asked Ratchet.

"I fear we may soon find out," said Optimus. Back at base, Red Alert had already patched up Optimus' chest and just locked a brace onto Ratchet's now re-plated arm.

"There we go," he said, putting away his tools. "It's the best I could do."

"That's all I ask of you, my young pupil," said Ratchet. Nearby, T-AI and the girls were watching Fowler, monitoring his condition. But as Ratchet walked over, it got Sunset curious.

"What the heck happened to you guys anyway?" she asked.

"We engaged a full battalion of undead Cybertronian warriors," said Ratchet. "We barely made it out with our lives."

"Wait, zombies?" asked Pinkie. "You guys fought zombies and we missed it?!"

"I don't think that's what's important here, Pinkie," said Rainbow.

"Yeah," said Twilight, having gone over the notes Optimus and the medics had made on the scrapped equipment. "What is important is that Megatron has managed to get enough of this Dark Energon stuff to bring back armies."

"Ironhide, you exercised extraordinarily poor judgment in allowing the humans to accompany your squadron on such a dangerous mission," said Optimus.

"It won't happen again, sir," said Ironhide, saluting. "I promise. If it makes you feel any better, they've got powers and they can handle themselves in a fight."

"Plus, it wasn't actually Ironhide's fault," said Pinkie. "It was mine."

"Pinkie, please," said Ironhide, not in the mood for this.

"Plus, check it!" Pinkie continued, flipping out her phone. "Recon!" Optimus leaned into her phone and ran over the numbers, interested.

"Hmm. Wheeljack, look this over," he said. "It may be of importance to Megatron."

"As in the same guy who sicced zombies on you guys?" asked Rainbow. "Who here thinks it's gonna be a weapon?" The girls all raised their hands, and Spike raised his paw. Wheeljack looked the numbers over and was interested as well.

"I don't think so," he said. "I'll need to look at a bigger picture before I come to any sort of verdict, but I doubt it's a weapon."

"Even so, if Megatron plans to use it, it is not only the safety of these girls that is at risk but the safety of all humanity," said Optimus. Sunset was worried about what this might mean for her and Equestria, which she still hadn't brought up. Back at the _Nemesis_ , now in orbit around the planet, Megatron was throwing a hissy fit against Starscream.

"Please, Lord Megatron, I meant no-" He didn't get to finish his groveling as Megatron knocked him across the bridge with his mace.

"Well, he can't say we didn't warn him," Skywarp whispered to Thundercracker.

"I ordered you to await my command!" the warlord growled, punching Starscream away. "Instead, your mindless agenda has resulted in the disabling of my ship, and the delay of my master plan!"

"Please understand that my intentions were pure, master," said Starscream, scuttling away. "I just wished for you to be rid of Optimus- AGH!" He was interrupted by his master's boot landing sharply on his face.

"NO ONE RIDS ME OF OPTIMUS PRIME BUT MYSELF!" Megatron yelled. "DO YOU UNDERSTAND?! DO YOU?!" Starscream's head was starting to flatten as he was crushed.

"Please master! I swear I will make things right!" he choked out. "I know how to accelerate your plans ahead of schedule." Megatron was intrigued, as he removed his boot and pulled him up in front of his cannon.

"Explain, commander," he said, warming up his cannon. "While you still can." That night, at the base, Twilight (who had given her parents an excuse of her staying over with Sunset for the night) and Wheeljack were going over the picture Pinkie had brought them. Finally…

"Eureka!" said Twilight.

"What is it?" asked Wheeljack.

"I think I made a breakthrough," she replied, sliding the numbers from her tablet over to Wheeljack's computer screen. Once he saw it, the engineer's optics went wide with shock and fear.

"It can't be…" he said. "Optimus!" Quickly, the Prime approached. "These are engineering specs for a space-time vortex generator. Just like the one I made for the GroundBridge."

"But it seems way more powerful," said Twilight, looking at the numbers again. "Wait. Does that mean…?"

"Megatron is building a SpaceBridge," said Optimus as the others entered. "If he hasn't already."

"Fine by me," said Sunstreaker. "Sooner he leaves, the better."

"Sunstreaker, a SpaceBridge vortex runs in both available directions," said Optimus. "Megatron may not be using it to leave this system, but to bring through his conquering army of Terrorcons."

"The main event Megatron spoke of in the canyon?" asked Ratchet.

"But wait. The only place in the universe he could hope to find and recruit that many dead soldiers is-" Twilight stopped herself as she realized it. "No…"

"Precisely," said Optimus, looking to the stars, his optics syncing with the base's cross-galactic sensors to zero in on the home-planet of both factions, and the war between them itself. "Cybertron…"


	8. Chapter 8

**Ch. 8: Battle of Orbit**

In the base, Twilight had secured a satellite image of a large metallic ring surrounded by a strange jagged rock frame.

"Good news, guys," she said. "I managed to find Megatron's SpaceBridge. The bad news is that it's in orbit around the earth even higher than the moon."

"Out of our reach," said Optimus, clenching his large metallic fist.

"Don't you guys have a spaceship?" asked Rainbow.

"We used to," said Jazz. "But it basically blew up in the crash."

"Okay, so you can't fly. So what?" asked Pinkie. "Can't you just GroundBridge up there?"

"I'm not sure that's advisable," said Wheeljack. "Even with my skills, the GroundBridge's range is severely limited. If we try to stretch it all the way into planetary orbit, the vortex might break like a string and scatter us to the four corners of the universe."

"Well, unless you've got a better idea, that's what we're goin' with," said Applejack.

"Optimus, you can't condone such meaningless bravado," said Ratchet. "There has to be another way."

"Since Megatron is likely already en route to the SpaceBridge, I'm afraid it is a risk we will have to take," said Optimus, readying his blaster. "Reaching the bridge first and holding it against the inevitable enemy onslaught is our only means of defeating Megatron." Just then, Bumblebee raced in with Sunset jumping out of his cab before he transformed and skidded to a stop.

"Sorry we're late," said Sunset. "What'd we miss?"

"Just our next assignment," said Ironhide. "Pack up, we're rollin' out."

"Where to, general?" asked Bumblebee.

"The final frontier, my dear," said Rarity, patting Bumblebee's foot.

"Wait, space?" asked Sunset. "I thought they were grounded."

"They are, technically," said Twilight. "But hey, technicalities have never stopped _us_ before. Why should it stop them?"

"Well then," said Sunset, looking up at Bumblebee. "See ya when you get back?"

"Definitely," said Bumblebee as he slid down his visor and raised a yellow face-plate from the sides of his face before moving to the GroundBridge.

"Coordinates of SpaceBridge locked," said T-AI. "GroundBridge activated." The levers cycled down and the bridge opened, ready for the group to move.

"Take care up there, Sunstreaker," said Rarity.

"Always do, doll," said the bot as he walked to Optimus at the bridge.

"Ooh! I am so jealous!" said Pinkie, standing next to Ironhide.

"Don't even _think_ about following me this time," said the general as he joined the others at the bridge, who now included Jazz, Cliffjumper, and Hound.

"Remain on comlink system for communication in the interstellar vacuum," said Optimus, turning his com on, as did the others.

"Optimus, if you leave me stranded on a planet teeming with organics, I will never forgive you!" said Ratchet.

"Until we meet again, old friend," smirked Optimus, sliding up his face-plate. "Autobots, transform and roll out!" Then they all switched to vehicle mode and rocketed through the bridge, appearing in space just short of the SpaceBridge. "Return to robot form and initiate artificial gravity systems!" They all did so, their feet instantly connecting to the metal ore of the bridge, though Hound did misjudge his footing a bit and lose balance, he got it back.

"Don't look down," he said. "Or up. Or left."

"Jeez Hound, calm down," said Bumblebee. "This isn't the first time we've had a job on a moon, and I doubt it'll be the last."

"Not as long as that guy's still breathing," said Jazz, pointing at the _Nemesis_ , which had just arrived. Optimus stared down the ship for a moment before Bumblebee broke the silence.

"So lemme get this straight," he said. "Megatron's packing enough Dark Energon to raise the dead of all of Cybertron?"

"Indeed," said Optimus. "And since we do not possess ready means of disabling this SpaceBridge…" Then he leveled his blaster, as did all the others. "Nothing gets in, nothing gets out!"

"Sir, yes sir!" everyone yelled. Megatron saw the Autobots from a feed to the bridge and chuckled.

"You never did disappoint, Optimus," he said. "Never have, never will. Unlike you and your worthless brothers, Starscream."

"You must understand, Lord Megatron, we tried to dissuade Starscream from his course of actions, but you know how stubborn he can be," said Thundercracker.

"Besides, no need for concern my lord," said Skywarp. "Soundwave is locking onto Cybertron's galactic coordinates as we speak. Per Starscream's instructions." Megatron ignored that last part and tapped a finger against his arm cannon. The Autobots were still standing there on the bridge, waiting for it to activate, but it didn't come.

"Well? What's the hold-up?" asked Sunstreaker, gesturing with his thermite grenade launcher. Optimus quickly zoomed in on the ship and enhanced the image of the area that once held a large dish.

"It would appear as though the Decepticons have sustained significant damage to their interstellar navigational systems," he said, noticing the seared, sparking stump.

"Ah. That's _my_ handiwork," Rainbow said into the coms.

"Excellent work, Rainbow Dash," said Optimus, making Rainbow proud of herself. "Without that dish, Megatron will be unable to zero in on Cybertron to launch the Dark Energon."

"Wait, doesn't he remember where his own planet is?" asked Applejack.

"Naturally," said Wheeljack. "But Cybertron is hundreds of lightyears away from this system. If he wants to hit the mark, his aim will have to be _astronomically_ precise."

"Well if Megatron went to the trouble of moving to rendezvous with the Bridge," said Bumblebee. "Then he must have another targeting system. A remote one."

Wheeljack scoffed. "Unlikely," he said. "I've scanned this planet, and from what I've learned of its technology, I doubt a single radio-telescope dish exists in this whole system, never mind on this planet, powerful enough to target Cybertron."

"What about a huge group of _linked_ radio-telescope dishes?" asked Twilight, pulling up a picture on her computer. "Y'know, like the Karl G. Jansky VLA array in New Mexico."

"I- Hmm, y'know that's not actually a bad idea," said Wheeljack.

"Good thinking, Twilight," said Optimus. "Ratchet, have Agent Fowler alert the array staff to a possible security breach."

"You! Soldier!" said Fowler, sitting up in his hospital bed, still dazed from the Energon exposure. "You're outta uniform! Put on some pants." Then he passed out again as Fluttershy went to check on him.

"Um, not to offend him or anything, Optimus, but I think that might be more of a challenge than it's worth," she said, checking the EKG and linked medical systems.

"I would be inclined to agree," said Ratchet.

"Think we can get into the array's systems from here?" asked Sunset.

"Believe me, I already tried," said Twilight. "Firewalls are too thick, even for a hacker of my skills."

"Wait-wait-wait-wait-wait," said Wheeljack. "You actually think you could keep the Decepticons out of the systems?"

"Sure, if I could get in," said Twilight. That sparked a smirk on Rainbow Dash's face.

"Why not _in_ in?" she asked. "Y'know, like 'onto the complex' in?"

"Logging into their internal network on the other side of the firewall- that's genius!" said Twilight, hugging her friend.

"The risk is too great," said Optimus. "The Decepticons will no doubt be there. Perhaps even on-site themselves."

"With all due respect, Optimus, you said it yourself," said Sunset. "This is bigger than the fate of just seven crazy superpowered girls and their dog. This is about the whole planet."

"Yeah, if we let Megatron win, we're toast along with the whole human race," said Pinkie. "And I for one am not really stoked to have what are basically alien robot Nazis watching my every move."

"Your opinion, Twilight?" asked Optimus.

"I'd say it's worth a shot," said Twilight, packing up her gear. Back on the _Nemesis_ , Starscream was getting antsy about the Autobots on the SpaceBridge.

"Surely, master, the Autobots are, uh… up to something," he said.

"Anyone could've figured that gem out," Skywarp whispered to Thundercracker.

"Really commander?" asked Megatron sarcastically, prompting Starscream to give a nervous chuckle. Then Megatron slammed a button on the console, sounding a small alarm. "Decepticons! Crush them!" And at that command, a whole fleet of flyers flew toward the bridge, weapons hot.

"Here comes the welcome wagon," said Bumblebee, his stingers crackling with energy.

"Let's light 'em up, boys!" yelled Ironhide, spinning his minigun and blasting enemies out of the sky, the others quickly following suit. In New Mexico, the girls all quickly de-spaced from the GroundBridge within the property marks of the complex, Applejack taking a Cybertronian Magna-revolver just in case. Once they got over the usual sickness-inducing power of the GroundBridge, the girls moved in with Applejack checking around corners and into rooms all the way to an isolated computer terminal.

"Man, you'd think a place like this would have better security," said Pinkie as Twilight tried to log onto the system.

"We're in," she said but caught something. "And so are the Decepticons."

"What?" asked Sunset. "How can you tell?"

"Look at this," said Twilight, pulling up a picture on the screen. "These are the same schematics as we saw on the ship. But this time, I should be able to download them." With that, she plugged her flash drive into the computer and quickly copied the schematics to it.

"They must be trying to aim the SpaceBridge," said Rainbow. "Looks like you were right to come here, Twilight."

"Yeah, they're synchronizing it to the dishes," said Twilight. "But I can sync to them too."

"Won't they notice?" asked Spike.

"Don't doubt it," said Twilight. "But even if they catch that we're in the system, how are they supposed to know we're in the house?" Unfortunately, in the very next room was Soundwave, connected to the system himself. He had jumped into the building through a skylight and connected data tubes to the central hard drive of the system and proceeded to aim the dishes toward Cybertron. Everyone on the bridge felt as it turned in the direction of their home planet, some momentarily losing their balance.

"Was that what I think it was?" asked Sunstreaker.

"The Decepticons are locking onto Cybertron," said Optimus. On the bridge of the _Nemesis_ , Starscream saw this on the console with glee.

"Lord Megatron, the SpaceBridge is ready to be activated," he said.

"Finally," said the dark one with a sinister glee.

"Not on my watch, Megatron," said Twilight, typing like there was no tomorrow. "Shifting target to the moon of Kerberos." Once done, the bridge adjusted as well turning toward the small moon.

"Whoo! Nice work, Twi!" said Bumblebee. On the ship, Megatron saw what happened and grew angry.

"Starscream, what is happening out there?!" he asked. Starscream, instantly afraid for his life, turned to the coms.

"Soundwave, what is happening down there?!" he asked.

"Interference with targeting detected," said Soundwave, locking into the security system. "Scanning building for intruders." Then he locked onto the camera in the girls' room to see them. "Intruders located. Ravage, deploy." Then a large flash drive, similar to Laserbeak's, dropped from his back and transformed into a robotic panther with two Gatling guns and six stinger missile launchers. "Operation: Distraction." Ravage nodded and skulked down the hallway, weapons ready.

"Wait, so what happens when the Decepticons realize they're being tricked?" asked Rarity.

"It's just virtual combat," said Twilight. "Y'know like online gaming."

"Yeah cmon Rarity," said Pinkie. "What are those buckets of bolts gonna do? They're probably a thousand miles away or something." But they were wrong as Ravage just opened the door and spun up his Gatling guns. Quickly Fluttershy noticed and dropped something on the ground between them, generating a blue barrier, blocking all the bullets. Then Ravage just jumped over the barrier and grabbed Sunset by the wrist in his jaws. Applejack quickly whipped out her revolver and fired a warning shot, but Ravage didn't relent. Twilight quickly adjusted the dishes again and unplugged her drive just before Ravage batted her over to the others and destroyed the computer. Fluttershy quickly grabbed a fire ax hanging on the nearby wall and held it with shaking hands. She tried attacking the bot but was knocked away dropping the ax. Then Ravage grabbed the weapon and seemed to incorporate it into his systems, sprouting twin Energon-powered ax blades on his tail. The others saw this and looked on in fear.

"You handed it an ax?!" asked Sunset.

"We're doomed," said Twilight. But just before Ravage could attack, it appeared that Soundwave called him back as he ran back to where he came from. The girls quickly decided to follow and found Soundwave just in time for him to lock the dishes back onto Cybertron. Once they were locked, Ravage slashed through a cable on the ground with his ax-tail before he discarded the weapon, transformed and plugged back into Soundwave. Pinkie quickly whipped out her phone and took a picture of the large con, and Soundwave did the same before firing a shot of plasma out of his shoulder-mounted cannon, blowing a hole in the wall. Then he transformed into a large Oshkosh HEMTT M985 truck with an attached communications array and drove away into a GroundBridge before it disappeared.

"Why'd he leave?" asked Rainbow, coughing away the dust from the broken wall. Then Twilight saw the dead wire.

"Because he accomplished his mission," she said sadly. "He cut the hard-wire. The dishes are stuck locked to Cybertron now. Permanently." The girls sighed in defeat.

"Mission failed," Sunset said into the coms. "Requesting evac." On the ship, Starscream saw that Soundwave had returned and that he had succeeded.

"Now, Starscream?" asked Megatron, getting antsy.

His commander gave a cruel chuckle. "Now," he said simply, pressing a button on the console. With that one push, the vortex opened in the frame of the SpaceBridge just behind the defending Autobots.

"No," said Optimus as he saw Megatron raised up to the main deck with the large meteorite of Dark Energon.

"At long last!" he yelled and in a strong grunting effort, threw the meteor toward the vortex.

"Shoot it down!" yelled Ironhide as he and everyone there started firing, but nothing they did even phase the meteor as it shot through the SpaceBridge vortex. Once through, the meteor crashed onto Cybertron and spread its dark power across the planet. Megatron could feel it all; the power of every lost spark from the war returning devoted to him.

"ARISE, MY ARMY OF THE FALLEN!" he yelled. And arise they did, from all over the planet flying toward the vortex.

"So. How are we supposed to fight a whole planet of the undead?" asked Jazz candidly.

"Optimus, do you read?" asked a voice on the comlink.

"Perceptor? Is that you?" asked Bumblebee.

"Yes it is," said Perceptor. "Listen, I saw the whole thing. There's a massive horde of reanimated husks approaching the SpaceBridge vortex. And they're all radiating a particular energy signature."

"Dark Energon," said Sunset. "What's the plan?"

"Wheeljack," said Optimus. "We must destroy the SpaceBridge before they get through. There should be enough live Energon coursing through it to achieve a detonation, but we lack the ordinance to do so."

"Wait a sec," said Bumblebee. "Perceptor, what about your cannon? Think that might be enough?"

"I doubt it, but it sounds like you guys need some help," said Perceptor. "Unfortunately, I'm not built for flight."

"Then you're lucky I am," said a voice with an Australian accent. Bumblebee recognized it almost instantly.

"Jetfire!" he said happily. And indeed on the other side was a large white Autobot with wings and enough weapons to blast almost an entire fleet to salvage. But the Terrorcons were too tough, so he quickly flew down to the planet and grabbed an auburn Autobot covered with solar panels, clearly Perceptor, and flew him through the enemy fleet to the others.

"Hey old buddy," said Bumblebee, knocking on the leg of the large Autobot. "How ya been?"

"Cold," said Jetfire. "But boy, am I glad to be back in the thick of it."

"As am I," said Perceptor. "Now then…" Then he flipped a large cannon up onto his shoulder and warmed it up. "Fire in the hole!" He blasted a huge beam out of his cannon at the SpaceBridge, but it barely even scratched the device. "Blast. I thought that wouldn't work."

"Any other ideas?" asked Jetfire.

"If I knew how Megatron's engineers built the SpaceBridge, I might be able to find a more technical way of blowing it," said Wheeljack, pondering.

"Would schematics help?" asked Twilight, plugging her drive into the system.

"Instrumentally," said Wheeljack, moving to open the file.

"Optimus, I must say that the SpaceBridge may be our sole hope of returning home to Cybertron," said Ratchet. "Are you certain its destruction is the only option?"

"I am afraid so, old friend," said Optimus.

"Then, by all means, Wheeljack, let us light our darkest hour!" said the medic.

"I love it when you say stuff like that!" yelled Wheeljack as he set to work. "Alright, I'm sending positions to everyone's internal systems. Get there and I'll walk you through it."

"Autobots, do as he says," said Optimus. "As I make my stand." The Autobots quickly left as Megatron flew toward him, transforming just before he landed.

"Your fellows are smarter than I give them credit for, Optimus," he said. "They know when to retreat."

"I hold no illusions about engaging this particular serpentron, Megatron," said Optimus. "But I might derail its objective. By removing its head." Then he flipped out his axes.

Megatron just laughed. "Highly unlikely, Optimus," he said, pulling out his flail and extending a sword from his cannon arm. "As I am infused with their very might!"

"Then let this battle be as the ancient prophecy said," said Optimus. "'One shall stand. One shall fall'."

"My thoughts exactly," said Megatron. Then they both charged at each other, roaring like the warriors they were, engaging in an incredible swordfight, neither one giving the other an inch.

"These things are getting closer," said Fowler, who had woken up earlier. "That's bad, right?"

"Only if by 'bad', you mean 'the apocalypse is at hand unless we stop them', then absolutely," said Twilight.

"Bumblebee to Wheeljack," said the scout. "We're in position."

"Alright, now pay close attention," said the engineer as he began walking the squad through it. Optimus meanwhile was beginning to lose the fight as he had already lost one of his axes and had the blade of the other chopped clean off. In a matter of moments, Optimus was weak on his knees before the warlord. Megatron was about to deal the final blow when…

"My lord!" came a voice over the coms.

"Thundercracker!" said Megatron. "What is it?"

"I don't mean to question you and your all-seeing wisdom, Lord Megatron, but it appears the Autobots are up to something again, near the sensitive equipment of the bridge this time."

"Ahh. Misdirection, Optimus," said Megatron, understanding. "You would've made a fine Decepticon." He slashed, but Optimus, weak and broken he may be, blocked his blow and stood strong.

"I chose my side on Cybertron, Megatron," he said. "And I assure you that you will not win this war." Then he threw his rival's blade away, flipped his ax into a blaster and opened fire on the highest setting, nearly blasting Megatron through the vortex, but he just transformed into Jet Mode and flew away back toward the ship.

"Starscream, my hordes approach," he said. "Rendezvous with the SpaceBridge for pick-up and transport." Back with the others, Bumblebee was nearly done.

"Okay, now follow the line from the flow regulator to the Energon pump," said Wheeljack. "You should see a valve."

"Found it," said Bumblebee, bringing it up.

"Good," said Wheeljack. "Now in order to turn all that Energon against itself, all you need to do is reverse the current."

"Care to do the honors, Ironhide?" Bee asked.

"With pleasure," said the general, taking the valve in one hand and giving it a simple 180-degree turn, causing Energon sparks to start appearing. "Current reversed."

"Yes!" said Fowler, obviously celebrating early. "Right?"

"Let's wait until the conquering heroes are home before we celebrate," said Sunset.

"GroundBridge prepared for evac," said T-AI. Suddenly Megatron appeared near the sabotage squadron and opened fire, one of his shots hitting Bumblebee square in the chestplate.

"AGH!" he yelled as he started drifting into space.

"Bee!" yelled Hound and Jetfire quickly grabbed the scout by the leg, dragging him back. Just as he did, the bridge started shaking and falling apart from all the Energon flowing against itself.

"Now might be a good time to go," said the flyer and everyone started running toward the edge, including Optimus. Megatron, however, flew to the vortex to see his army nearly coming through, but no warship to pick them up.

"Starscream! Where is my ship?!" he yelled angrily.

"We would never make it in time, Lord Megatron!" said Starscream. "Don't be a fool! Transform back and retreat to the ship!"

"Optimus, the GroundBridge is ready and waiting, right below you!" said Wheeljack.

"Autobots, retreat to base!" yelled Optimus as he jumped off the meteor and into the bridge with the others quickly following suit. Megatron was still at the vortex awaiting his army's arrival. But then he saw explosions around the rim of the bridge and quickly tried to grab at least one out of the vortex. But that was his last mistake as no sooner had he touched the Terrorcon's finger… then the entire bridge exploded in a huge cloud of blue fire. Starscream had seen the whole thing.

"Decepticons," he said. "It is with deep sorrow that I note for the log Lord Megatron's spark has died." The guards were all understandably upset and angry, but the commander just smirked. "All. Hail. Starscream." Back at base, the rest of the team was still waiting for the away team to return.

"Are they okay?" asked Fluttershy.

"I'm registering nine life-signs," said Red Alert. "Though Bumblebee's is rather faint." Just then, Optimus skidded through into the base, a bit scratched up but otherwise none the worse for wear. Then the others appeared, all glad to be back okay. But then Jetfire and Perceptor walked in, Jetfire holding a very weak Bumblebee, who the flyer placed on the ground.

"Bumblebee!" said Sunset as she ran over and grabbed his hand. "Please, buddy."

"We've already lost enough back home in this war," said Ratchet. "By the AllSpark, please don't let it take another."

"Cmon Bee," said Sunset, nearly crying. "I need you." At that, Bee opened his eyes and smirked at his human friend.

"Seriously Sunset?" he asked in pain. "There _are_ other cars on this planet."

Sunset wiped her eyes and gave a weak smile. "But you're my first," she said and hugged Bee's large body, which he gently returned with one arm.

"And Megatron?" asked Wheeljack.

"Not even one as powerful as he could've survived Ground Zero," said Optimus.

"Well then, all's well that ends well eh?" asked Rarity.

"Prime," said Fowler, making Rarity think she spoke too soon. "I didn't get to thank you bots for the save earlier. I owe you one. Heck, we all do."

"Just doing our job, Fowler," said Ironhide as the agent walked into the elevator and was lifted away. Then something occurred to Pinkie Pie.

"So… is this the part where we have to say goodbye and forget we ever met?" she asked Optimus. The leader lowered his mouthguard and smiled at her.

"No," he said. "As long as the Decepticons are still here, you are still in danger. And so you shall remain under our watch."

"Thank you, Optimus," said Twilight. "So what's next?"

"I would like to send a message to any Autobots in the rest of the galaxy," said Optimus. "Perceptor, open a hailing frequency."

"Yes sir," said Perceptor as he turned on the satellite dish on top of the base and activated the communicator. Then Optimus spoke.

 _Without a means of leaving this world, we Autobots take strength in the bonds we have forged with our seven young friends. True warriors, if not in body then in spirit. My name is Optimus Prime, and I send this message: Though we did not choose to be of Earth, it would seem that we are here to stay. If you approach this planet with hostile intent, know this; we will defend ourselves. We will defend humanity. We will defend… our home…_


	9. Chapter 9

**Ch. 9: The Things That Haunt Us**

It had been a few days after the SpaceBridge was reduced to asteroids, and the Decepticons had been suspiciously quiet for some time. Optimus theorized that they were working to select a new leader, and the process was slow-going. In the meantime, Twilight had been coordinating with Fowler to acquire new alternate forms for Jetfire and Perceptor, who finally delivered after a while of haggling with NASA. Finally, Twilight got the holograms of the vehicle modes projected into the base; a space shuttle orbiter and a satellite.

"Gentlemen, I think I've found the perfect things for you," she said. "What we have here is a high-speed space shuttle with enough room for Bumblebee or a human crew of several hundred. And here is a new prototype orbital satellite telescope, capable of tracking movements and monitoring communications across galaxies."

"Not bad," said Jetfire, looking the holograms over. "I think we'll take 'em."

"Indeed we will," said Perceptor. With that, they both ran green beams out of their eyes over the holograms, capturing all the data about the devices before they faded. "Scan complete."

"Excellent," said Twilight, turning off the holograms. "Now, unfortunately, Perceptor's alternate form is only going to be viable in orbit. The good news is that Jetfire should be able to fly him up there without any problems."

"Don't space shuttles take a lot of fuel?" asked Rainbow.

"Not this one," said Jetfire. "Now then. I trust you guys have an aircraft catapult ready for me?"

"Just got it installed last month in case you made it, Jetfire," said Bumblebee, opening another door in the base to reveal a large track leading up into the air.

"Not bad, kid," said Jetfire, bumping Bee on his shoulder. "Alright Perceptor, load up." Then he transformed, and Rainbow hooked him up to the catapult. Jetfire opened his canopy and let Perceptor climb in before transforming in the cavity.

"Ready for launch," said the satellite.

"Wait," said Sunset. "Won't Fowler be pissed about an unplanned shuttle launch out of nowhere?"

"Don't worry about it," said Twilight. "I already cleared it with him."

"In that case…" said Jetfire, closing his canopy and warming up his engines. "Time to burn some Energon!"

"Read my mind, big guy," said Rainbow going to the catapult controls. "Ready for launch." Once Jetfire's engines started burning, Rainbow pulled the lever and the shuttle was sent flying along the track all the way out to a previously opened exit, shooting out into the very edge of the atmosphere. Once there, Jetfire opened his canopy.

"Last stop; thermosphere," he said as Perceptor floated out and used small onboard rockets to align himself and extending solar panels and a radio dish.

"Orbit achieved," he said over the radio. "Connecting to global information superhighway and Autobot base systems. Activating galactic sensors. Achieved. Congratulations, Optimus; we now have unlimited eyes and ears to every corner of this galaxy."

"Excellent work, Perceptor," said Optimus. "I hereby declare you our orbital interdiction. Keep your sensors open to any sort of incursion into this solar system." Then Jetfire noticed something out of the corner of his radar and transformed.

"You mean like that?" he asked, transmitting his feed though Perceptor's computers to the base to show them…

"Another ship?" asked Wheeljack, looking at the video to see a Cybertronian spaceship floating deadly through space.

"Who's is it?" asked Rainbow.

"Can't tell yet," said Jetfire. "Not in range."

"Wait a minute," said Perceptor. "I'm picking up some sort of signal from that ship on a restricted band. Wait. By Primus."

"What's wrong?" asked Twilight.

"It's an Autobot identification beacon," said Perceptor. "That's the _Axalon_."

"The what?" asked Applejack.

"An exploration ship from before the war," said Ironhide, turning to Optimus. "You think Kup is still alive on that thing?"

"There is only one way to find out," said Optimus, turning to the communicator. "Perceptor, establish radio contact."

"I already tried, Optimus," said Perceptor. "No response on any frequency. Everyone onboard is either dead or in stasis." Then the ship started shifting toward the planet and falling.

"Optimus, the ship's gotten caught in the planet's gravitational field," said Jetfire. "And the engines aren't running. She's going down hard."

"We have to save that ship, Optimus," said Wheeljack. "If we can find enough parts, it might be the only way for us to get off this planet."

"Understood," acknowledged Optimus. "Jetfire, get onto the ship and do all you can to level it off. Once you land it, transmit us the coordinates and we will rendezvous with you."

"Copy that Optimus, I'm on it," said Jetfire as he quickly fired his engines and flew to the ship, quickly landing in the airlock. Once on board, he ran to the bridge but quickly stopped when he saw the condition of the crew. "Optimus, we have a problem; the crew's all dead."

"Including Kup?" asked Wheeljack. Jetfire looked around and found a few active stasis pods with a tall blue bot in one of them.

"No, he's in stasis, though he's not looking too good in there," he said. "Either way, I'll try and get this thing leveled." Quickly he seized the controls in time to see that the ship had already hit the atmosphere. "Oh scrap." Quickly he grabbed the controls and fired the retro-thrusters, managing to level off the ship but it was still falling. He tried other controls, but they wouldn't work. "Gear's jammed, Optimus. Best I can manage for this thing is a controlled wreck."

"Do all you can, Jetfire," said Optimus. "Just transmit the coordinates when you land."

"I'll send 'em to ya now, I'm sure you'll find me," said Jetfire, sending his current coordinates across the computer just before the ship slammed into the ground, knocking him through the now brittle windshield and crashing into the ground. The coordinates were instantly received, and T-AI ported them into the GroundBridge, which was then activated.

"Autobots, transform and roll out!" said Optimus as he, Bumblebee, Red Alert, Ironhide, and Sunstreaker transformed and started to drive for the portal. But then Sunstreaker stopped and went back to the girls and opened his door.

"You guys comin' or what?" he asked. The girls quickly all piled in and Sunstreaker floored it through the portal to catch up with the others. Once there, he let the girls pile out and transformed with the others, readying his heat ray just to be safe.

"So… where's the ship?" asked Bumblebee. Then Sunset looked in one direction and her eyes widened.

"Well, if I were a guessing girl, I'd suggest we follow the trail of scrap metal," she said, pointing after the metal-filled scar in the ground nearby, leading in one direction.

"Smart," said Bumblebee as the Autobots moved to follow the scar all the way to the end to find the ship wrecked near a large patch of trees and Jetfire on the ground nearby. Ironhide quickly moved over to him and picked the soldier up.

"You okay?" he asked.

"I'll live," groaned Jetfire. "Not too sure about Kup though."

"Which is exactly why I came along," said Red Alert, pulling out his medical kit. "Now then, where's the patient?"

"Inside," said Jetfire. "But we'd better hurry. From what I could see, he was leaking enough to power the base." Quickly the whole crew boarded the ship, all stunned by the barbaric way the crew died.

"Good lord," said Fluttershy, shocked. "Who could've done this?"

"I dunno, but I don't think I wanna find out," said Applejack.

"Well, I think you're going to have to because if by some miracle I can get Kup back on his feet, we'll have to ask him," said Red Alert. "Open her up." Bumblebee quickly did so, opening the pod to allow Kup to fall out, leaking just as much as Jetfire said.

"Kup, are you okay?" asked Optimus. Kup coughed up Energon but woke up, his optics blurry but he could still make out the prime.

"Optimus?" he asked weakly.

"Hello, old friend," said Optimus, taking his hand.

"W- We received… your message," Kup groaned. "We were just on our way here when… attacked."

"Attacked? By who?" asked Ironhide.

"Don't know," he said. "Looked like… Sky-" It was here that he was caught in a massive coughing fit. Red Alert quickly scanned him and grimaced.

"He's lost too much Energon, he's going critical," he said. "We have to get him back to base."

"No," coughed Kup. "Not… with- *cough*-out… Arcee…" Bumblebee quickly realized he was talking about whoever was in the other stasis pod. Quickly, he went to the console and flipped the switch to open it, letting another Autobot fall out into Jetfire's hand. But this one was different; she was light purple and white and had a female-like body and face with feet that looked like spring-loaded panels and a scoped Energon crossbow on her back.

Bumblebee looked at her and suddenly his face started to turn blue, which Sunset took as the Cybertronian equivalent of blushing and smirked at him. Suddenly Arcee woke up groaning from what seemed like a headache. When she saw Jetfire, she was scared and fell from his hand, pulling her crossbow. "Who are you?! Where am I?!" Then she heard Kup coughing and saw him on the ground. "Dad!" She quickly dropped her weapon and moved over to his side.

"Don't worry, darling," groaned Kup. "Daddy's here. Just tired." Then he started to close his eyes, but Red Alert just slapped him.

"No you don't soldier," he growled. "This is the first time this sort of thing has happened to me in megacycles, and I know for damn sure I am not losing another patient in this war."

"'Dad'?" whispered Pinkie confused about Arcee and Kup's conversation.

"Just because we're machines doesn't mean we can't have family, kid," whispered Sunstreaker. "After all, Skywarp _is_ brothers with Starscream."

"Fair point," whispered Twilight before moving to her phone and opening the com channel to the base. "Wheeljack, Kup is bleeding out. Requesting medivac. And get Agent Fowler on the line for clean-up at our coordinates."

"Understood," said Wheeljack as the GroundBridge opened up nearby.

"Alright, Jetfire carry the patient, Ironhide keep pressure on the wound, he can't afford to lose anymore Energon," said Red Alert. "Bee, Sunstreaker, watch our backs; make sure whoever did this isn't still here."

"Got it," said the two yellow bots readying their weapons. Quickly, the Autobots and the girls ran back through the bridge and Kup was rushed to sickbay. Arcee was so worried she could barely stay still as the hours went on in sickbay. Finally, Ratchet and Red Alert walked out of the MedBay with forlorn expressions.

"How is he, doctor?" asked Arcee. The medics looked at each other, but Ratchet shook his head before looking at her and placing his hand on her shoulder.

"We did all we could," he said. That was more than enough to make Arcee understand, and some sort of fluid, Twilight guessed coolant or some sort of lubricant, came to her optics. "I'm sorry." Arcee just clenched her fist and pushed her way past the medics, running out the main street door, her tears splashing onto the floor behind her.

"Arcee, wait!" said Optimus, trying to stop her. But Sunset held up her hand as she stood in front of him.

"Let her go for now, Optimus," she said. "We managed to tell her the rules while she was waiting, and she seems really by-the-books. She won't reveal you guys, she just needs to grieve."

"Besides, we connected her to the com system," said Bumblebee. "If we need to contact her, we can."

"Regardless, I feel someone should keep an eye on her," said Optimus.

"Let me, sir," said Bumblebee. "I think I can empathize with her."

"And I know I can," said Sunset, gripping her pendant. "It's my geode power. Let me go with him." Optimus thought, but allowed it, letting the two drive off after the young Autobot. She had managed to find a place to cope on a cliff overlooking a highway outside of town, where she let her tears fall onto the stone. When she heard engine noise coming up behind her, she moved for her crossbow just in case.

"Finger off the trigger, kid," said Bumblebee as he pulled up next to her. "We just wanna talk."

"'We'?" asked Arcee. "What, you got a Mini-Con in there?"

"What's a Mini-Con?" asked Sunset as she climbed out of Bumblebee, who then promptly transformed.

"Think something like Soundwave's partner Ravage that nearly scrapped you and the others," said Bumblebee.

"That panther-bot?" asked Sunset.

"Yeah, bots like him," said Bee before he turned to their new friend. "It's Arcee, right? This is my local partner, Sunset Shimmer. I'm Bumblebee." Then he extended his hand. Arcee was confused at first but figured it out and took Bee's hand in her own and shook it.

"Nice to meet you," she said before she sat back down on the cliff. "But if you'll excuse me, I'd prefer to grieve in private."

"You're sorry your father's dead," said Bumblebee as he and Sunset sat down with her. "I understand where you're coming from."

"You don't understand anything, bugbrain," said Arcee angrily, getting in his face.

"No, I really do," said Bumblebee, pushing her back. "I haven't told many of the others this, but I wasn't the only one of my family to sign on to fight the Decepticons. I had some brothers; Buzzer, Shellhead, and Monarch. We even had our own squadron; the Stingers. Everyone all had their own thing in the squad; Buzzer was the boss and infiltration agent, Shellhead was the artillery expert, and Monarch… whew. Well, let's just say he was our PR man and leave it at that."

"What about you?" asked Sunset.

"I was the distraction and team medic," groaned Bumblebee. "Not the greatest role I could've asked for; ended up getting shot at a lot, but hey, at least I knew how to patch myself up afterward." He and Sunset shared a chuckle at that, but then Bee saw Arcee was scowling at them, so he quit it and got back to his point. "Unfortunately, Monarch's ego rubbed off on Buzzer and he signed us up for an infiltration op at Tiger Pax, to try and get intel to Optimus and the others. We never stood a chance. My brothers got off easy; Megatron killed them off fast before the army made it. Me? To make it simple, every time I speak, my voice box hurts so much that I'm forced to remember how Megatron tore it out and tore my family apart. In Monarch's case, quite literally."

"I'm sorry to hear that Bumblebee," said Arcee. "But this isn't like what happened to your family. My father had a secret. I never figured it out before we got to this system, and when we did, we were attacked. The Con who killed my father and his crew did it himself and forced me to watch as he eviscerated the crew. And my father… I'll never be able to rest until the con who took him from me is in as many pieces as he left our quartermaster in."

"Then it would appear now is your chance," said a cruel voice. Arcee growled as she, Bumblebee and Sunset looked and saw a green and red Decepticon with a large cannon in his hands. "Though I wouldn't even hope to defeat me if I were you."

"We'll see about that, Skyquake," growled Arcee as she charged the Decepticon, punching at him with the force of a high-caliber machine gun, but Skyquake dodged all his attacks without even trying. Bumblebee tried to move and attack him, but Arcee kept him back with one hand. "Don't! He's mine!"

"You can't take him alone, Arcee!" said Bumblebee, bus she wouldn't listen. Bad idea as with a few strong blows from Skyquake, Arcee fell to the ground, crumpled in pain and dented. Then the Decepticon turned his attention to the young yellow scout.

"Originally, I was planning on sparing you," he said. "But Commander Starscream would prefer I kill all the Autobots I can before I go to the _Nemesis_. You understand." Then a loud blast echoed through the canyon, knocking Skyquake to the ground. Then Bumblebee and Sunset saw Arcee walking over to the Decepticon holding her side but leveling her blaster at him all the same. He gave a cruel chuckle. "Please child. I handled several heavily-trained soldiers myself on your ship. You think I can't take you down?" Arcee just blasted him again, this time in the face knocking him back to the ground. Then she dropped her crossbow and fell on top of the Decepticon, pulling a large knife off his belt before she scowled and brought it down into his midsection.

"This! is for my crew," she growled, feeling the Energon spill onto her hand. Then she moved the knife and stabbed him in the stomach. "This! Is for my father." Then she pulled it out again and angled it at his chest. "This is for me." Then she brought it down and cut the Decepticon's chest clean open, then ripping out a blue-glowing metal orb dripping with Energon, which she moved to her mouth and took a drink from. Then she just dropped it and fell to her knees next to the body of her father's killer, with an unusual look in her eye. Sunset walked over and placed a hand on her leg, avoiding the spilled Energon.

"Y'know, where I come from we have a saying," she said. "'Vengeance can be a sweet or bitter brew'. How did you find it?" Arcee just kept staring at the husk.

"I don't know yet," she said. "Though it does feel pretty bitter. It's weird, I thought this would feel better, y'know?"

"I hear ya," said Bumblebee. "But who knows? Maybe it'll feel sweeter when we finally end this war."

"Maybe," said Arcee as she wiped her mouth on the back of her hand. Then she saw something down on the highway below that caught her eye. "Ooh. He-llo, beautiful." Sunset was confused until she looked and saw a girl driving down the road on a Kawasaki Ninja 250R motorcycle.

"I take it you've found your alt-mode?" asked Bumblebee.

"Yes I have," said Arcee, scanning the motorcycle and rider. Once the scan finished, her body took on more aspects of the motorcycle, including a windshield and headlights on her chest and halves of tires in her legs and on struts above her shoulders. "Alright, not bad. Let's run these in." Quickly, she transformed and projected an almost perfect hologram of the rider. Sunset smirked at Bumblebee, who quickly understood and transformed letting her board.

"Race you back to base?" Sunset asked Arcee.

"You're on," said Arcee as both vehicles quickly floored it back to base, arriving just in time to see Optimus and Wheeljack wrapping up a conversation with Fowler, who had just arrived.

"Ah good," said Wheeljack as both Autobots transformed back. "We were just about to call you back. Agent Fowler, this is Arcee, that new girl we were just telling you about. The one from today's ship crash."

"Special Agent William Fowler," he said walking up to the railing as Arcee walked over to him as well. "Autobot liaison to outside government. I'm sorry to hear about your father."

"Thank you," said Arcee.

"Good news is my team managed to recover some of the data from your ship's computer system," said Fowler, handing Twilight a drive which she plugged into the computer. "I haven't looked at it, but I think you might want to."

"Thank you, Agent Fowler," said Arcee as she walked over to the terminal and opened the file to show a video of Kup. "Dad?"

"Hello Arcee," said Kup in the video. "If you're watching this pre-recorded message, it means you've probably struck out on your own and I wanted you to know my final secret; the _Axalon_ 's exploratory work wasn't purely for scientific reasons, though that was part of it. The main purpose of our planet-hopping was to identify planets Megatron would possibly conquer and setting up defenses to prevent him from doing so. You see, Optimus Prime himself ordered we do so, but I couldn't let you know that. Your mother died in the beginning of the war, so I couldn't bare letting you know we were involved in it. To that end, if you have in fact struck out on your own, find and meet up with Optimus Prime. That is my last wish, Arcee; end this war." At that, the video ended and disappeared with Arcee growling with clenched fists.

"Don't worry Dad," she said. "I will."

"So. Should we arrange some sort of funeral for Kup?" asked Rainbow.

"It's only right," said Arcee. "But he didn't want to be buried on any planet. He wanted his body to be left to float across the stars for all eternity."

"Then allow me," said Jetfire, transforming and automatically hooking up to the catapult. "Load him up, I'll send him off."

"Thank you, Jetfire," said Arcee as Ironhide loaded Kup's body into Jetfire's cavity. "Safe travels, Dad." With that, Jetfire closed himself up and took off, launching into space and letting Kup's body float out of his body into the blackness before Jetfire returned home, the whole team ever humbled by their loss, but made happier by Arcee's joining of the crew.


	10. Chapter 10

**Ch. 10: Scrapheap**

Not long after Arcee arrived at the base, Pinkie had asked to be partnered with her, which Optimus okayed as long as Jazz went with Rarity and Applejack went with Ironhide, but after the reassignment, Perceptor detected a strange signal coming from the Antarctic, which Ironhide and Sunstreaker were sent to investigate. Unfortunately, the sub-zero temperatures of the frozen continent were hampering their progress.

"Are we there yet, Ironhide?" Sunstreaker asked. "I think my oil pipes are starting to freeze up."

"Not yet, but it should be just past the next ridge," said Ironhide, checking the scanner he brought with him. With that, they made their way to the ridge and saw it sloping down a few yards. "Well… once more unto the breach, eh?"

"You said it, big guy," said Sunstreaker as the two started sliding down. "Weeeee!" Finally, they landed with Sunstreaker smiling broadly. "Wehee!" Then Ironhide checked the scanner and was surprised, letting out a low whistle.

"Man, these readings are off the scale," he said. "But where's the thing?" Sunstreaker glanced off to one side and saw something.

"Uh boss, you might wanna check this out," he said, leading him to a glacier where a large metal pod was frozen into the ice. "I got this." Then he produced his weapons, firing them at the ice which then quickly melted, leaving the pod surrounded in a thin frozen shell. Ironhide then quickly levered it out and into position.

"Ironhide to Wheeljack," he said over the coms. "Objective secured. Requesting GroundBridge." Once back at base, the pod was rolled into an unused hangar in the base while the two soldiers were hooked up to medical equipment, which Ironhide found highly unnecessary.

"I already told you Ratchet, we're fine," he said, removing one of the tubes from his arm and moving to sit up. But Ratchet just grabbed him and pushed him back down.

"Ep-ep! The only way to be certain you're fine, general, is for you to endure standard defrosting procedure," he said as Red Alert reattached the tubing. "You know just as well as anyone in this base that prolonged exposure to sub-zero temperature can cause permanent system damage."

"Wheeljack, have you learned anything more about our Antarctic find?" asked Optimus.

"Nothing yet, sir," said Wheeljack, pointing to the surveillance footage of the hangar. "Pod's still frozen solid, and even if it weren't, it's so rusty that I'm not sure I could get into it without damaging anything inside." Unfortunately, he didn't have to worry about that for long, as the moment he turned off the surveillance footage, a claw broke through the metal of the pod, fracturing the ice.

The next day, T-AI opened the GroundBridge with Optimus and Jazz moving to enter it.

"Jazz and I will search for any clue which might explain the origin of our Antarctic find," said Optimus.

"Only until your sensors sound," said Red Alert, working on a D-pad, making the twos' insignias flash blue and beep for a second. "Now remember; Once your core temperatures reach the blue zone, system failures aren't just likely: they're _imminent_." Just then, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Arcee, Ironhide, Sunstreaker, and Hound drove in, letting the girls out.

"Miss us, guys?" asked Pinkie. Ratchet just groaned and adjusted the spikes on his head.

"Shouldn't they be in school?" he asked.

"It's Saturday," said Rainbow as the bots transformed. "We've got the whole weekend off. To spend with you guys."

"I wasn't expecting to carpool," said Rarity, referring to how she just drove up with Rainbow in Cliffjumper. "What's going on, Jazz?"

"Tag-team, kid," said the Wrecker, loading his pistol. "My turn for exploration duty."

"Oh, a shame," said Rarity. "It's a lovely day for a drive. I would hate for you to feel guilty for leaving me indoors." She raised an eyebrow as if asking if she could come along.

" _Arctic_ exploration duty," Jazz clarified.

"Indoors where it's warm," said Rarity quickly walking up to the catwalk.

"The Arctic? Which pole?" asked Twilight.

"South," said Wheeljack. "Found something down there that might be of interest."

"I would welcome you to come with us, Twilight," said Optimus. "But the conditions are too dangerous, even for we Cybertronians."

"Say no more, Optimus," said Twilight. "I understand." Optimus then slid up his face mask as he and Sunstreaker moved for the vortex, before turning back to her.

"But… I will bring you back a souvenir if I can find anything," he said.

"No need," said Twilight. "Every memory I have of this place is souvenir enough." Optimus grinned under his mask as he and Sunstreaker passed through the vortex.

"Transport complete," said T-AI, moving to deactivate the bridge, but then the console started sparking and static appeared on the screen just as the vortex closed. "By the AllSpark!" Then she started fritzing out herself, snow appearing on her legs and her voice buzzing with intermediate static.

"So what should we do today?" asked Sunset.

"Why not all just do our own thing?" asked Rainbow, taking her guitar out of its case. "I need to get in some practice anyway."

"Sounds good to me," said Ironhide. "I think I'm gonna hit the shooting range."

"Bumblebee! Arcee! Sunstreaker! Ironhide!" yelled Wheeljack. "Get over here! Now!"

"Ugh! Alright-alright, we're coming," groaned Arcee as the four walked over.

"Hey Cliff, you up for some video games?" asked Pinkie, passing him a controller.

"Pass," said Cliffjumper, looking at one of his own grenades. "Think I'm just gonna load up some more glass gas."

"Aw, what?" asked Pinkie tauntingly. "Scared of losing? To a girl?" _That_ got Cliff's attention as he moved over to her. It also got Jetfire's attention at having heard that.

"Oh, she did _not_ just say that," he said, trying to keep himself from laughing.

"Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho," he chuckled as he projected a hard-light hologram of a tan man with red hair and clothes and burning blue eyes, clearly his original behind-the-wheel avatar used to avoid suspicion. "Bring. It. On." The hologram then grabbed the controller.

"No mercy," said Pinkie manically and they started playing "Call of Duty" on the TV they had set up in the base. Twilight meanwhile decided to go off looking around. Meanwhile, Wheeljack was trying to get the GroundBridge working.

"Cmon, cmon, cmon!" he growled as the others made it over.

"You know, just because Optimus is out doesn't mean you get to order us around like you own the joint," said Ironhide. "Who do you think you are, Ultra Magnus?"

"No, but we've got a bigger problem than who's in charge," said Wheeljack. "I need some heavy lifting and tech support; the GroundBridge just died and T-AI is on the fritz."

"Wait what?" asked Arcee. "What about Optimus and Jazz?"

"They made it through fine," said Wheeljack. "It's getting them _back_ that I'm worried about." Then he pointed at the floor near the door. "Now get those panels up, chop-chop."

Meanwhile Twilight and Spike were walking the halls with Twilight's notes from school as well as everything she had learned concerning Cybertronian biotechnology while testing on Sunstreaker.

"Let's see," she said, going over the notes. "Energon serves as a sort of blood, automotive lubricant or some sort of analogous chemical serves as other bodily fluids…" Then they heard something clank off to the side. "What was that?"

"I don't know," said Spike, sniffing. "But I smell something weird."

"Does it smell like the bots?" asked Twilight, looking in the general direction.

"Kinda," said Spike as he ran off to one side and found an old bolt. Twilight checked it out and was confused, but then scared when she heard a metallic clinking in the vents above them. Quickly she produced a small Taser and looked around as she heard the clinking around her.

"Who's there?" she asked but was only answered by a loud clang behind her. Then she tripped and came face-to-face _plate_ with some sort of small Cybertronian being. She screamed a bit and backed away, trying to shoot it but missing completely. Thankfully, whatever this thing was, it seemed harmless and she gave a small chuckle. "Hey, buddy. Where'd you come from?" Somehow, this thing seemed to understand her and approached her. "Optimus never said anything about the bots having pets."

"Twilight, I don't know about this," said Spike, sniffing the being. "It seems dangerous."

"Oh cmon Spike," said Twilight. "Look at it. It's harmless." Then she remembered the bolt and pulled it out. "You wanna play fetch, little guy?" Whatever this thing was, it started jumping in place as if to say yes. "Okay, go get it!" Then she threw the bolt with the organism quickly going after it. Then just before it hit the ground, the being landed under it, opened its mouth and somehow shredded and ate it. Twilight was surprised and honestly kind of interested as she took the being back to the main base, unaware of the huge hole in the electric panel nearby.

Back at the TV, Pinkie and Cliffjumper were really going at it until finally, with one last headshot, Cliffjumper won and the hologram him shot back to the Autobot who whooped.

"Whoo! That's what happens!" he said. "You mess with Cliffjumper, you get the horns baby! Whoo!" Then out of nowhere, the lights and the TV died before coming back on again. "What the-? Oh, come on guys, a power failure? I just won!" Over with the technicians, Ironhide had just moved the panel to show an array of circuit boards, one of which had huge chunks taken out of it.

"Sheesh," said Wheeljack, taking it out. "We definitely have a problem. Now, what on earth could've caused this?" Then the lights flickered again as the others walked over.

"Or that?" asked Ironhide.

"Could be the main fuel-grid," said Bumblebee.

"Nah, I checked it earlier today," said Cliffjumper. "It was fine."

"I just pray it isn't a substation malfunction," said Wheeljack. "That would take way too long to fix."

"Hey guys, check out what I found," they heard Twilight call.

"Little busy over here!" said Wheeljack looking over at her, but his demeanor and that of all his fellows quickly changed when they saw the being in her arms. "MERCIFUL ALPHA TRION!"

"AAH! Kill it, kill it!" yelled Bumblebee as he and the others flipped out their weapons and pointed them at Twilight.

"Whoa-whoa, hold your fire!" called Sunset getting in front of Twilight with the others. "What's got your fan-belts twisted?"

"Scraplet! SCRAPLET!" yelled Ironhide, spinning his minigun.

"What the heck's a Scraplet?" asked Applejack.

"The most dangerous breed of vermin to ever plague the face of Cybertron," said Ratchet, genuinely scared.

"Not to mention hundreds of other planets," said Arcee. "I've seen them everywhere in my travels with Dad." Rainbow glanced at the being in Twilight's arms and smirked.

"This thing?" she asked, pointing at it. "Pfft! You're joking, right?"

"You're giant robots!" said Pinkie. "Scrappy here is… tiny."

"Yeah well, you have no idea the damage that 'tiny' thing can do," said Sunstreaker, still not relenting.

"Oh come on, he won't hurt anyone," said Twilight. Unfortunately, she was wrong as no sooner did it open its optic sensors and look at the Bots than it opened up a huge mouth full of spinning serrated teeth and charged them.

"AAH! Quick! Kill it!" yelled Ironhide as the Autobots shot up the floor to try and hit it. But they missed, and it jumped onto Sunstreaker's leg whereupon it started eating him.

"AAH, okay get it off!" he yelled falling onto his back. "Get-it-off, get-it-off, get-it-off, get-it-off, get-it-off, get-it-off!"

"Okay, that is just messed up!" said Sunset as the girls watched the scene. Sunstreaker quickly tried grabbing it off, but that worked about as well as anyone else thought it would with the Scraplet eating his arm too.

"Okay, that's it!" he yelled and batted it away. It nearly attacked again, but a well-placed shot from Applejack's Magna revolver made it fall to the ground, dead with a huge steaming hole in its head.

"Well," said Rainbow, honestly kind of scared. " _That_ just happened." Twilight quickly ran over to Sunstreaker.

"Oh man big guy, I am so sorry!" she said.

"Ugh," he groaned in pain. "I've had worse."

"Is he gonna be okay?" she asked Red Alert.

"Only a mesh wound," the medic replied. "He'll live."

"Now do you believe us?" asked Cliffjumper. "All these things ever do is dismantle machinery and eat _anything_ metal. Especially _living_ metal."

"Well hey; bug swatted, game over, right?" asked Applejack holstering her pistol.

"No," said Arcee. "Take it from someone who knows; when it comes to Scraplets, there's _never_ just one." Then Ironhide facepalmed.

"And I think I know how they made it into the base," he said. Soon they were in the hangar with the pod, which had been violently ripped open from the inside. Ironhide was looking inside with light produced by Wheeljack's chest-mounted headlight set. "As I surmised; it's a Scraplet trap."

"Uh, an _empty_ Scraplet trap," said Sunstreaker, still scared.

"It must have been ejected from an extermination frigate eons ago, most likely targeted for the sun," said Wheeljack. "Only to get caught in Earth's gravitational field and end up in Antarctica where the sub-zero temperature kept them in a state of cryogenic stasis."

"Until we brought them here and let them thaw out," said Sunset.

"Now they're wide awake and ready for breakfast," said Rainbow.

"So how many bugs're we talkin' here?" asked Applejack.

"Hundreds, I'd say," said Wheeljack, turning off his lights. "Maybe even thousands. And the power hiccups, GroundBridge damage and T-AI's glitching are sure signs that their infestation is well underway." Optimus and Jazz, however, remained blissfully unaware of the mess taking place at the base right now as they were still wandering the Antarctic, currently rappelling down an ice-cliff on energy grapplers Jazz had brought. Then both their sensors sounded at once.

"Guess we better call for evac before we seize up," said Jazz.

"Agreed," said Optimus, turning on his comlink. "Optimus to base. Core temperature readings have reached the blue zone. Requesting GroundBridge." But all he got in response was static, ditto for trying to communicate with Perceptor. At the base, the team was having the same problem.

"Wheeljack to Optimus, do you read me?" asked the engineer. "We have a situation. Optimus come in. Jazz, do you read? Perceptor?" Then he just banged on the console as the screens went to static. "Slag! The Scraplets must've gotten into the comlink system. If we don't purge them now, they'll scrap the whole base and us with it."

"I say we just bug outta here and let them keep the place," said Bumblebee.

"Agreed, let's just move to another base of operations," said Sunstreaker. "How's Project: ATLANTIS coming along?"

"Wait, what's Project: ATLANTIS?" asked Sunset.

"Top secret," said Ironhide. "And out of the question. It isn't finished yet, and even if it was, the guys there still don't have a working GroundBridge. If we don't get ours online stat, Optimus and Jazz are as good as dead."

"Sunstreaker, I've known you for three weeks now," said Twilight. "I thought you never run."

"Twi, you haven't seen a swarm of these things devour a bot whole," said Sunstreaker. "I have. Hell, it was my old job before the war to get rid of the things in the first place, and I lost more than a few brothers in _that_ fight too. They rip you apart inside-out, going for the smaller juicier bits first; one fuse and circuit at a time until they're nothing left. And I mean _nothing_. Not even your optics."

"Sheesh," said Rainbow, trying to calm the now shaking Fluttershy down. "Thanks for the barrage of imagery."

"You've got to let us help," said Sunset.

"Of course, we're organic," said Rarity, realizing it. "They won't hurt us."

"Typically, I find your fleshiness to be your least engaging quality…" said Ratchet, clearly angering Rarity. "Though it would appear to present us with an advantage in this particular scenario."

"Alright, here's the plan," said Sunset. "We pair off; one bot, one organic. Ratchet, you and Red Alert get Sick Bay ready just in case. I'll be watching yours and Wheeljack's backs while he fixes the systems."

"And the rest of us go bug-huntin'," said Applejack, flipping out her revolver.

"Those won't work," said Sunstreaker, pressing a button on the side of the platform revealing an array of sniper rifle-like weapons. "We'll have to use these." Then he handed them out.

"Null rays?" asked Bumblebee, getting a feel for it. "Huh. Haven't seen these since Cybertron."

"They aren't actually null rays," said Sunstreaker, giving some smaller ones to the girls. "They're more stasis blasters. Our supervisor's own invention from when I made a living out of exterminating these little pests. Too low-power to affect bots, but Scraplets are on ice once they get hit with one of these bad boys."

"Alright let's do this," said Rainbow. "Roaches check in." Then she cocked her rifle.

Applejack cocked hers in a similar manner and smirked. "They don't check out," she said. In Antarctica, Optimus and Jazz were starting to succumb to the cold and wind as they could barely move at their usual speeds in robot form. They were both still trying to get the base on the communicator, but it wasn't working out. Finally, Jazz fell over onto his hands and knees tired and immobile.

"Jazz, are you okay?" asked Optimus.

"Fine, fine," he groaned as Optimus picked him up. "You sure a good drive wouldn't help? I hear Santa Cruz, Argentina's gorgeous this time of year."

"The nearest temperate climate is far too distant, Jazz," said Optimus. "Attempting to reach it would expend too much energy. Energy we must save if we are to have any hope of surviving this frigid wasteland. Until Wheeljack and T-AI send for us- and they _will_ \- our best option would be to seek shelter from these winds and insulate ourselves."

"Understood chief," said Jazz as they kept going. Back at base, all the units were armed with the stasis rifles Sunstreaker had given them and were patrolling the halls of the base to find the Scraplets.

"Man, for once I get to be your bodyguard," said Rainbow as she and Cliffjumper patrolled. "How awesome is that?"

"Uh, Twilight said she found the first one here, right?" asked Cliffjumper. Then the lights suddenly went out again, and Cliffjumper let out a loud high-pitched scream. When the lights came back up, Rainbow smirked and looked at her partner.

"Did you just scream like a little girl?" she asked.

"No!" said Cliff, honestly embarrassed. "Maybe… Look, can we just discuss this later?"

"Oh-ho-ho-ho, we're _definitely_ gonna be discussing this later," said Rainbow as she kept walking.

"Sorry, it's just-" said Cliffjumper. "My part of town on Cybertron was Scraplet Central before the war, and I hated it. Everywhere you look, you find at least three. They're like earthling mosquitos; always springing up everywhere and ripping you apart. I was _terrified_ that was gonna happen to me." Then he heard some metallic clinking above them. "Ah!" He quickly readied the rifle but was even more scared when he didn't hear it anymore.

"Chill out, Cliff," said Rainbow. "Just try to stay focused."

"Oh, I'm focused alright," said Cliffjumper. "I'm focused on all the little monsters around the base that are gonna rip me about a hundred new ones if I turn my back."

"Sheesh okay, message received," said Rainbow. Just then, she saw a small horde of the monsters in front of her. "Oh shoot, Cliff! Quick, shoot 'em!" The two quickly leveled their rifles and blasted the bugs as fast as they could, with similar situations occurring all over the base. In the main complex, the medics were keeping Sick Bay ready to handle the inevitable patients with Wheeljack working overtime to try and repair the GroundBridge. Sunset was starting to get antsy as she brandished the rifle.

"How's it going, Wheeljack?" she asked.

"Ugh. Not well," said the engineer. "I've replaced the damaged conductors and rerouted all central conduits, but for some reason, the GroundBridge still won't receive power, and T-AI still won't come back online."

"Well, keep working," said Sunset. "We're gonna need all the help we can get." Then she heard Scraplets clinking in the vents. "Oh boy." Quickly she set the rifle to scatter-blast mode and aimed it as it seemed to convert the body of it into that of a shotgun. She looked up and saw a huge mass of the beasts, which all immediately locked onto Wheeljack and somehow started flying toward. "Oh, of course they can fly!" growled Sunset as she started shooting them down, each shot freezing them. "They're already dangerous enough on the ground, so why not have them _fly_ around you while they're literally eating you alive!" Unfortunately, the bot couldn't respond as he was quickly swarmed by whatever Scraplets got past her. She quickly went to help him, but her gun clicked. "Are you kidding me? These things don't have unlimited ammo?"

"Heads-up!" yelled Red Alert as he bowled her a fire extinguisher, which she quickly used, blasting the Scraplets with freezing cold Carbon Dioxide, instantly freezing them into a state of cryo-stasis and making him fall off the engineer.

"You okay?" she asked.

Wheeljack quickly responded by coughing up Energon before turning to her. "I've been better," he groaned. Just then, the others limped in with Arcee holding one arm over Bumblebee.

"Ratchet, patch-kit now! We're leaking Energon like- Oh come on!" groaned Jetfire, seeing the swarm that was still in the base. Which quickly locked onto the bots that just appeared and moved to attack.

"T-AI, if you can hear me and still have some control over the base's critical systems, activate the fire suppression system in the main hangar!" yelled Wheeljack. Thankfully, T-AI did hear him and quickly triggered the requested system, discharging a super-cold chemical into the base from the ceiling-mounted sprinklers, freezing the Scraplets after one drop. The bots quickly hid the girls under their bodies to avoid them getting frozen, which they continued to do until the Scraplets were all frozen. "Okay, that's enough. Turn it off." Quickly, the sprinklers stopped and everyone got up. "Everyone okay?"

"Yeah," said Applejack, rubbing her arms, clearly cold. "Why didn't ya do that sooner?"

"I would've, but that was one of the first things that was broken," said Wheeljack. "And T-AI is the only one who can control it." In Antarctica, Optimus and Jazz were starting to seize up after having found a frozen alcove, where Optimus saw Jazz nodding off.

"Jazz," he said, prodding the Wrecker into waking up.

"Sorry," he said, rubbing his optics. "Just resting my eyes."

"We cannot falter," said Optimus. "The longer we remain _alert_ , the longer we remain _alive_."

"Any suggestions?" asked Jazz. "I'd be all for transforming and blasting the heaters, but I think this cold's messed up my T-cog. Wait. Why not a game to pass the time? How 'bout 'Who screwed up back at base'?"

"Our predicament could be the result of a simple malfunction," said Optimus seriously.

"Caused, unintentionally of course, by Ironhide," said Jazz. "No communicators, maybe the power's dead too. Big guy must've tripped a cable loose or something."

Optimus gave a dry chuckle. "He never was too graceful," he said.

"Yeah, real 'shoot first, ask questions later' kinda guy," said Jazz. "Remember when we first woke up and he accidentally drove into that power pole? HA! I don't even think _I've_ got better moves than what he pulled off."

"Ironhide may be… a bit too large for this world," said Optimus honestly. "But his inner strength cannot be held, nor can his tactful mind. One cannot be measured by size or strength alone."

"Greater words of wisdom, I don't think I've ever heard sir," said Jazz. At base, once all the Scraplets were frozen, the girls quickly started beating them with wrenches and old pipes as the medics patched everyone up.

"There," said Sunset, lifting her crowbar from the body of another Scraplet. "I think that's the last one." Then they heard a quiet whirring down the hall. A painfully familiar whirring.

"I wish," said Sunstreaker. "This was just a scouting party, sent out by their alpha to find food."

"Oh you've gotta be kidding me," groaned Bumblebee.

"So now, the rest of them know we're here?" asked Ironhide.

"And if we let them have us for lunch, Optimus and Jazz will never make it back," said Wheeljack. "We have to get the GroundBridge back online."

"Of course," said T-AI, still static-y in places. "Then we could use it to send these bugs anywhere on the planet."

"Why not back to Antarctica?" asked Sunset. "We already know they can't handle cold."

"Nice," said Rainbow. "One-way ticket back to hell."

"That's right," said Sunstreaker. "These Scraplets are actually a lot small than most of the ones back home, so exposure to sub-zero temperature should instantly freeze them."

"But it won't be worth lead if we can't get the bridge back up, so think Wheeljack. Think!" said the mechanic as he punched himself in the face, making more Energon spill from his mouth.

"Wait, that's it!" said Twilight. "Everything's back in place, right? So if the bridge still isn't receiving power…"

"Then there must be a breach in the main fuel-line," said Bumblebee. "Of course."

"If we weren't breaching ourselves, and a living all-you-can-eat buffet for these little assholes, one of us could probably get back there and fix it ourselves," said Hound.

"Leave it to us," said Twilight. "Just get us some tools and point us in the right direction." Wheeljack quickly provided them with a tool-kit and sent them down the hall, following the main line down to a leak, just as theorized.

"Alright, let's get to work," said Sunset, lowering a welder's mask as she kneeled down near it. "Blowtorch." Rarity quickly handed her the item which she used as fast as she could, as well as a small titanium panel. In the main hangar, the bots got to talking.

"So what do we do once the bridge is on?" asked Jetfire. "Send the bugs out or bring our men in?"

"Optimus and Jazz are fresh metal," said Sunstreaker. "If we bring them back first, what reason will the Scraplets have to leave? We're gonna need bait."

"Where are we gonna get bait?" asked Ironhide. "Those things already helped themselves to everything in here, including us."

"Wait, that gives me an idea," said Arcee. "Scraplets love fast food, right?" That got Sunstreaker's attention.

"Don't tell me you're considering-?" he asked.

"Do you really need to ask?" she smirked as she transformed into bike mode. Down the hall, the pipe had just been patched in time for the girls to see the Scraplets flying down the hall.

"T-AI, all systems go," said Sunset. "Let 'er rip!"

"Confirmed," T-AI said through the speakers. "GroundBridge coordinates locked. Activating…" In Antarctica, Jazz was now at the point of panting in pain as the wind blew around him.

"Ya know what the worst part is?" he asked Optimus. "After fightin' the Cons all these centuries; getting stabbed, shot at, blown up- _this_ is how our lights go out?"

"Jazz, this may not be the death we had planned, but if it is how it is to be, if we are indeed to become one with the AllSpark this day, then I welcome it humbly," said Optimus. Jazz smirked as he raised his visor and moved his left hand to Optimus', which the big bot noticed and saw his soldier saluting him.

"It's been a privilege serving with you, Optimus Prime," he said.

Optimus smiled as he lowered his face-mask and saluted him back, albeit weakly. "Likewise, Jazz," he returned. Then they saw the GroundBridge opening not far from their location. Jazz smiled.

"Bout time," he said, getting up and helping Optimus up. "Cmon chief, let's go." At the base, Arcee quickly drove to the opening of the GroundBridge and let out a loud whistle and honk.

"Cmon boys," she said, transforming back and running her hands along her curvy body. "You want some of this? Well come and get it!" Then she transformed back to bike-mode and drove for all she was worth down the tunnel, with the Scraplets hot on her tailpipe. They barely got her a few times, but she was still too fast for them as she shot onto the other end of the vortex just as Optimus and Jazz were limping toward it. "Hit the dirt! Now!" Quickly, she transformed back and dove into the snow just in front of the vortex, allowing the Scraplets to target Optimus and Jazz, the latter of whom's eyes shot open.

"Aren't those-?" he didn't get to finish his thought as the Scraplets quickly froze in midair and just bonked against him and Optimus like ball-bearings. "Ow, ow, ow-ow-ow-ow-ow, ow! What the heck, Arcee?!" Finally, the assault stopped and Arcee got up, still leaving a blue mark from her breaches on the snow where she landed.

"I'd invite you in, but the place is a mess," she joked weakly. Jazz and Optimus just smiled at each other at that, before all three returned to base and the whole crew quickly underwent medical treatment with the others helping.

"Report bio-circuitry status," ordered Ratchet.

"Levels rising," said Sunset, checking her tablet.

"Fantastic," said Red Alert. "Twilight, keep a close check on Cliffjumper's electro-pulse monitor. Rainbow Dash, any damage to Jetfire's engines?"

"All steady," said Twilight.

"Nothing we can't fix," said Rainbow, pulling her head out of one of Jetfire's back-mounted engines. "Sorry if that felt a little too personal, big guy."

"Not at all, Rainbow," said Jetfire. "Nothin' my girl from back home hasn't done before."

"Perhaps you should rest with Wheeljack yourself, old friend," said Optimus. "It's been a very trying day, and you saved quite a few more lives."

"Well it wasn't all my doing, Optimus," said Ratchet. "Most of the credit goes to the girls."

"Our human friends may be small, but they are powerful in their own right," said Optimus.

"Agreed," said Red Alert. "We're just fortunate this breakout happened on a Saturday." And after that, things started to progress at the base as normal.


	11. Chapter 11

**Ch. 11: New Guy (pt. 1)**

In the aftermath of the Scraplet infestation, the whole Autobot outpost was on high alert, though that didn't stop Rarity from taking Jazz on one or two joyrides to the mall, which she was heavily in the mood to do again today.

"Right, that's all the day's chores done," she said, looking at the list on her phone. "Now what say we head out? There's a sale across town."

"I dunno, kid," said Jazz. "You remember last time, dontcha? You took so long I had to go for five laps around the parking lot just to make sure I didn't go stir-crazy." That apparently made Rarity a bit upset, so Jazz quickly proposed something else. "But there's nothing stopping us from taking the scenic route there." Then something came up.

"Optimus, this is Perceptor," said the telescope. "I'm receiving a signal on a restricted band, which appears to be coming from a ship inside this star system. I need help decoding it."

"Already on it," said Wheeljack as he set to work on the console. Once he finished, he was surprised. "Another Autobot identification beacon?"

"You mean there are other bot ships out there?" asked Applejack.

"Of course," said Arcee. "The _Axalon_ was on a voyage to the farther reaches of the Hercules Supercluster when the war escalated."

"As for the rest of us, the _Ark_ was the last ship off Cybertron once it went dark," said Bumblebee. "There were hundreds more, with the civilian and other soldier masses scattering across the universe. Though Decepticons have been known to bait traps with false beacons."

"Either way, we must exercise caution," said Optimus. "Perceptor, establish radio contact and ask for identification."

"Understood Optimus," said Perceptor, clearly transforming and making the console beep on his end as he patched the communications through to the base. "Unknown vessel, this is Perceptor of Earthling Autobot Outpost Alpha-34, speaking on behalf of Optimus Prime. Identify yourself presently or I will be forced to open fire."

"I've had warmer welcomes from Decepticon combat brigades," said a rough-sounding voice.

"Wait a sec…," said Jazz with rising excitement. "Rotorstorm?! You old buzzbrain! What're you doin' all the way out here?"

"Jazz? Jazz, is that you?" asked this new Autobot, now known as Rotorstorm. "He-hey, long time no talk man! What's with all the security?"

"This rock we're on is crawlin' with Cons," said Jazz. "How soon do you think you can get here and help even the odds?"

"Maybe sometime tomorrow, if I put metal to the pedal," said Rotorstorm. "Gonna need to know where to touch down first. Requesting landing coordinates."

"Alright, another new bot! This is awesome!" said Rainbow.

"Rotorstorm… I know of him by reputation alone," said Optimus. "Can you verify his voiceprint, Jazz?"

"My whole deal is sonics, Optimus," said Jazz. "And I can tell you beyond the slimmest chance that this guy is absolutely my bot."

"Understood," said Optimus, typing something on the console. "Rotorstorm, this is Optimus Prime. Request granted. Transmitting landing coordinates now. Safe travels."

"Coordinates received. Thank you, sir," said Rotorstorm. "See ya when I land, pal."

"You bet brotha," said Jazz. "I'll make sure you get a proper welcome."

"Roger that. Rotorstorm out," he said, cutting the channel.

"So… who's the new boyfriend?" asked Sunset, smirking.

"Old, actually," said Jazz chuckling a bit. "Roto and I go _way_ back. We were in the same special forces unit in the war; the Wreckers. Which means once Starscream finds out he's on his way here, he's gonna be praying to Primus that he could still hide behind Megatron." Unfortunately, that would not prove to be the case as Soundwave had picked up on the transmission and was replaying it for Starscream and his brothers while identifying Rotorstorm as a large flyer with twin blades and huge cannons to use as hand-weapons as well as shoulder-mounted missile-pods.

"An old war hero, eh?" asked Skywarp.

"Yes," said Thundercracker, looking through the holographic representation of Rotorstorm's recorded battles from the war. "And judging from this, he is by far one of the most lethal Autobots in the galaxy."

"True, but this presents us with an interesting opportunity," said Starscream. "Though we haven't much time. Pseudo!" A long black Decepticon with a blank face walked over on scythe-like legs quickly walked over.

"By your command, Lord Starscream," he said in an echoing voice. He then began scanning Rotorstorm's data and upon finishing, his body started shifting into that of Rotorstorm's.

" _You bet brotha_ ," said Jazz's recording. " _I'll make sure you get a proper welcome_."

"Fortunate that we also know how to prepare… a proper welcome," said Starscream sadistically.

Early the next morning, Perceptor was already tracking Rotorstorm's ship as it flew across the Rub al Khali desert. "ETA to LZ: two minutes, Optimus," he said.

"Understood," said Optimus as Red Alert was preparing his equipment, just in case.

"Do- Do you think he's here to visit? That would be nice," said Fluttershy.

"Maybe he'll stay," said Pinkie. "Hmm. Gonna have to find his own human though."

"GroundBridge ready," said T-AI. "Energizing…" Then the controls sparked, prompting Wheeljack to whack them with the big-honkin' wrench from his back, getting them running again.

"Frackin' Scraplets," he said, locking it back onto his shoulder. "Equipment hasn't been the same since they showed up."

"So… Rotorstorm is going to land halfway around the world and then we'll bridge him here?" asked Sunset. "Why not just have him come here?"

"We can't risk it," said Ironhide. "Just in case Starscream is tracking his position." Rarity meanwhile was watching Jazz running a rotary buffer over his chest, making it look like a mirror.

"Dear, I don't think I've ever seen you so excited," she said.

"Oh-hohohoho, you guys are gonna _love_ Rotorstorm," said Jazz, spinning his wheels. "We were like brothers. And tonight, we are gonna party!" Just then, a cluster of red blips just appeared on the radar feed Perceptor was transmitting.

"Alert; enemy bogies just popped up on Rotorstorm's six o'clock and are closing fast," said the cannoneer.

"Con slag!" growled Jazz. Unfortunately, it was; Decepticon Seekers were flying after Rotorstorm's ship and trying to shoot him down. One blast made contact and sent the ship falling into the sand like a meteor. The Seekers then transformed and started their approach to the ship. Then a large blast came out of the smoke and blasted the head off of one of them, sending him to the ground. The soldiers looked into the smoke and saw the tall blue form of Rotorstorm with one of his hand-cannons leveled directly at the others.

"If you're trying to ruin my day…" he said before sliding up a mouth-mask and drawing his twin-blades. "You're gonna have to try a lot harder than that." Then he just charged straight into the fray and started slashing the others to shreds. On the _Nemesis_ , Starscream was watching the whole thing from Laserbeak's optic feed.

"Make this quick, Soundwave," he said. "Before the Autobots arrive."

Back at the base… "Cmon Wheeljack, we're missin' the action!" said Jazz, ready to peel out once the bridge was open. Finally, the GroundBridge was open and the other end was aimed at the Rub al Khali.

"We'll get Sick Bay ready," said Red Alert.

"Ha! For who, the Cons? This is Rotorstorm we're talkin' about here, now let's go!" said Jazz, quickly burning rubber through the portal followed quickly by Sunstreaker and Bumblebee. Once they jumped out the other side, they had their weapons ready but found they weren't necessary, as Rotorstorm had just sliced the top off one of the Vehicons' heads and was surrounded by other dead ones. "I taught him that."

"You ever think I might need some help out here, bud?" asked Rotorstorm as he sheathed his swords.

"I didn't wanna mess up the show," said Jazz, holstering his pistol.

"You missed one," said Sunstreaker, looking at a weak Vehicon aiming his blaster at Rotorstorm. But the Autobot just shot a small missile out of one of his shoulder pods at the Decepticon, blowing him to bits without even batting an eye.

"No I didn't," he said before stopping in front of the three and lowering his faceguard, letting out a low whistle. "If this is all this planet has to offer, you guys are in bigger trouble than I thought." Jazz just chuckled and grabbed his old friend, picking him up. Which was surprising given Rotorstorm was actually a lot bigger.

"Good to see you again too, Roto!" he said happily, laughing.

Rotorstorm laughed too. "Watch the finish, you little speedster!" he said, pushing Jazz off him and dusting himself off. The whole group then sped through the GroundBridge and reappeared at the base, which chose just that moment to die.

"Son of a… We'll need to work on this, T-AI," said Wheeljack.

"Agreed," said T-AI, going to a console. "Beginning defrag process."

"Yo Roto, cmere," said Jazz. "This here's my local partner Rarity. Now she might not look like much but she can wreck with the best of us."

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance," she said giving a courtly bow. Rotorstorm gave a strange look at Jazz, which he replied to with a shrug. Roto just looked back at her with a smirk.

"You keepin' Jazz here outta trouble?" he asked.

"I try, but it always seems to find him anyway," she said, pulling out a file and working on her nails.

Rotorstorm chuckled. "We are gonna get along famously," he said before Optimus walked over to him. "Optimus Prime. It's a pleasure." He then saluted.

"Likewise, soldier," Optimus saluted as well. "What have you to report from your long journey?"

"Been bouncin' around from rock-to-rock, lookin' around for signs of friend or foe," returned the soldier. "Now… well, now I find both. Sizable operation you got in this place. Not too many of you though."

"The others are around the planet, but we're usually all we need," said Bumblebee.

"We are few but powerful," said Optimus. "We have suffered losses, but we have grown. And we would gladly welcome another into our fold here on Earth."

"I'd be honored, sir," said Rotorstorm.

"Then what're we waitin' for?" asked Jazz, turning up the dial on his shoulder-mounted speakers. "Let's get this party started right!" And with that, he started playing some thrumming funk music out of them.

"Well, this is gonna be distracting…" said Wheeljack, rubbing his chin as most of the others started partying it up, Pinkie even blasting herself out of her party cannon. On the _Nemesis_ , Starscream and his brothers were walking the halls down toward the brig.

"The second Pseudo passed through their GroundBridge, we lost his tracking signal," said Thundercracker. "No doubt the Autobot base is heavily shielded to prevent us from locating it."

"No need to worry, Thundercracker," said Starscream. "I have complete faith in him. After all, our inside man is already inside." The door to the brig opened to show the real Rotorstorm hanging by electromagnetic restraints in the middle of the room with all his weapons off on one side.

"Go tell ol' Buckethead he's fragged in the head if he doesn't think Jazz can sniff out an imposter," he said.

Starscream gave a small growl but looked at him. "Haven't you heard? _I_ command the _Nemesis_ now," he said.

"You?! Pfft-HA! Yeah right," said Rotorstorm. Starscream was just about to blast him when Skywarp stopped him.

"Whoa there Tex," he said. "He's not worth the trouble. Yet."

"Yes, he might still prove useful," said Starscream. "Pseudo is very good at keeping up appearances. He need only fool the Autobots long enough for him to open their GroundBridge from the inside so I may finally learn where their base is located… and send in my strike-force to stain its floor with the spilled Energon of Optimus Prime…" And indeed, on the top deck was a full fleet of soldiers ready to move as soon as the GroundBridge opened.


	12. Chapter 12

**Ch. 12: New Guy (pt. 2)**

At base, Rainbow was rocking out on her guitar as Jazz and Rotorstorm were tossing a large lump of what looked like scrap metal back and forth between them with extreme force.

"So, what's the point of this again?" asked Sunset as her eyes followed the metal.

"It's called lobbing," said Ironhide. "The favored pastime back on Cybertron, particularly among the warrior class. IE, these guys."

"Cmon Ironhide," said Jazz as he caught the metal. "I've seen you do it. Now cmon, show us what you've got!" With that, he threw the metal at the general who quickly caught it and smirked.

"Well, if you insist," he said and tossed it straight at Rotorstorm, sending him sliding back a few feet.

"Oh-ho-ho! Whew! Nice! Incoming!" yelled Rotorstorm as he threw it back, prompting Ironhide to get into the middle of it.

Then Twilight noticed something was missing. "Hey, where's Optimus?" she asked.

"Out for an evening drive," said Sunstreaker, confusing Twilight. "Don't worry about it. Primes don't party."

"Heh. I'm sure we know someone who could rectify that," said Spike, glancing over at Pinkie, popping handfuls candy into her mouth.

"Y'know, I've been meaning to ask," said Sunstreaker. "What's with the talking dog?"

"Well, it's kinda complicated," said Sunset as she walked over. "To put it simply, lemme ask you something; do you Cybertronians believe in magic?" This discussion consumed most of their time as the lob-ball found its way into Jazz's hands.

"Watch your heads!" said Jazz as he threw it at Ironhide, who it then bounced off of and hit the GroundBridge controls, causing some minor damage and pissing off Wheeljack.

"Hey! Watch the aim! What, are your targeting systems down or something?" he asked. "We're working on sensitive calibrations over here!"

"Sorry Jackie," said Rotorstorm as he picked up the ball. "Guess we're a little wound up." He stopped as he looked at the GroundBridge frame. "Nice bridge. You build it yourself?"

"Well not myself," said Wheeljack, pointing over to the medic. "I had some help from Ratchet over there."

"Still, quite the feat of engineering," said Rotorstorm.

"Isn't it?" asked Wheeljack proudly.

"Somethin' wrong with it?" asked Rotorstorm, looking over the engineer's shoulder.

"Nothing major," said T-AI as she ran holographic calculations. "We had a small Scraplet problem recently and Wheeljack didn't like how it sounded on the last jump because of it. We've shut it down for the time being to defrag the code."

"What if you need to use it?" asked Rotorstorm making Sunset, who had since left Sunstreaker stunned with her explanation of Equestria and its magic, grow curious about all his questions.

"Ohoho, no way," said Wheeljack. "We can't risk interrupting the defrag without causing irreparable system damage."

"Any idea how long it'll take?" asked Rotorstorm.

"Eh, couple hours, if we're lucky. Maybe longer, I dunno," said Wheeljack, turning back to the panel.

"Hmph. You run a tight ship," said Rotorstorm.

"Can't afford not to," replied the mechanic. "Not with Megatron's main court of lackies on this planet." Later, Jazz was telling the girls some of his and Rotorstorm's old war stories.

"So there we are; no communications, basically outta ammo, giving off Energon like a refinery, surrounded by Cons on all sides," said Jazz. "So what does Roto do?" The others slid forward as if wondering what the answer was, but Jazz just started cracking up. "Go ahead, ya maniac; tell 'em!"

"Ha! What I do best," said Rotorstorm vaguely, making Sunset even more curious.

Jazz just laughed some more. "He- He arms and chucks his only remaining missile straight into the primary fuel intake," he said. "Which was right frackin' next to him!"

"What?!" said Twilight, giving a small entertained laugh. "That sounds like suicide."

"Eh. Seemed like a good idea at the time," said Rotorstorm, gaining a smirk from Applejack. "See, she knows what I'm talkin' about."

"Good idea or not; when that thing hit the Energon, the place just went up like a nova," said Jazz. "We barely made it out alive."

"That sounds awesome!" said Rainbow.

"Yeah, I'm still scraping shrapnel outta my chassis," said Jazz, scratching his back.

"Ironic given the size of it," said Jetfire. "And not just the chassis, am I right boys?" The others around him then burst out laughing. Then Rotorstorm noticed something beeping on the console and saw the defrag was still in process.

"GroundBridge defrag at 45% completion," said T-AI.

"Anyway, there it is: Roto's signature on every bill Megatron slides him; one rocket, one blast, one slash," said Jazz. Then he noticed Rotorstorm seemed a bit apprehensive. "'Ey, you alright man?"

"Huh? O-Oh, yeah. Sorry, just… kinda zoned out there for a second," said Rotorstorm, rubbing his head.

"I think it's more than that," said Jazz. "You don't exactly seem like yourself."

"Well, how do you mean?" asked Rotorstorm, getting up from leaning on the catwalk.

"I dunno, you seem quiet," said Jazz. "I mean I always thought Springer was the quiet one of us."

"Heh, yeah he never did have much to say did he?" said Rotorstorm. "I think I've just been stuck in a can too long. I should probably go topside and get some air in my cabin before I go stir-crazy."

"I've got first patrol tomorrow," said Jazz. "Why dontcha come with?"

"Why not go now?" suggested Rotorstorm.

"And what, break up the party? Cmon man, the gang's lovin' ya!" said Jazz, suddenly remembering something. "Oh-oh, oh man you _gotta_ tell 'em about the Battle of Darkmount Pass."

"You tell 'em," said Rotorstorm. "You're better at it. Meantime, how 'bout Rarity here shows me the rest of the base?"

"Well, I don't see why not," said Rarity as she got up, but Sunset stopped her.

"Actually, how about _I_ do it?" she suggested. "I know my way around here a little better. I hope you don't mind, Jazz."

"Wha- Nah! Sure Roto. Go ahead, take off," said Jazz as he waved the two away.

"Alright," said Sunset as she made her way to the hallway opening. "Right this way."

"Ladies first," said Rotorstorm.

"Well, aren't you quite the gentleman?" she asked a bit happily surprised. "But I insist that you go first." Rotorstorm shrugged as he walked down ahead, followed closely by Sunset who managed to get off a quick touch on the back of his boot, revealing two things: 1; her powers did, in fact, work on Cybertronians, and 2; he was actually a Decepticon called Pseudo, part of some sort of Cybertronian minority called Shifters, who apparently took Optimus' term "Robots in Disguise" to whole new levels. Bumblebee glanced at Arcee, clearly wondering who should ask. Cliffjumper decided for them as he stepped forward.

"Hey," he said. "You good, Jazz?"

"Yeah just… I dunno, what's the term for when you feel weird about something you're painfully familiar with?" asked Jazz.

"Out of sorts?" suggested Twilight.

"Yeah that, thanks," said Jazz.

"I gotcha," she replied.

"Wait, you're not jealous are ya?" asked Bumblebee, chuckling.

"That Sunny's makin' friends with my best bud?" asked Jazz. "Cmon Bee, you know me better than that."

"Yeah, I do," said Bumblebee. "So what's up?"

"It's just that… something's just not right about Rotorstorm," said Jazz.

"Jazz cmon," said Arcee. "I may have been in stasis when I landed here but I know what he's going through. He's been traveling galaxies, probably for the last few millennia. He could just be rocket-lagged or… Well, people _do_ change, don't they?"

"Not Roto," said Jazz. "Not like this."

Back in the brig of the _Nemesis_ , the real Rotorstorm was struggling against his energy bonds trying to escape when the Vehicon guard posted to protect him aimed his blaster in the prisoner's face.

"You're not going anywhere Autobot," he said. Then Rotorstorm smirked and quickly wrapped his arms around the guard, shorting out both him and the shackles and allowing Rotorstorm to drop to the floor.

"Yeah, that's what they all say," he said, stretching himself out. Then he zipped to grab his equipment.

Back at base… "And that should about cover it," said Sunset, now walking along the catwalks near Rotorstorm's head. "Energon refining station and stockpile, primary generator, armory; all one would need to obliterate this place if one were so inclined. And of course, human living quarters. That was our idea naturally."

"Y'know just speaking practically here but having those three places so close together is an explosion waiting to happen," said Rotorstorm.

"That's exactly what Twilight said," said Sunset, giving a small giggle even if she _was_ talking to a disguised Decepticon.

Rotorstorm laughed too before he regained seriousness. "So where exactly is this bunker located anyway?" he asked.

"Even if I _did_ tell you, I doubt it would mean much to you," she said. "But… ah, why not? We're in the hills just outside Canterlot City."

"Yeah, can't say that _does_ mean much," said Rotorstorm, quietly smirking. "So is there any way out of here besides the bridge?"

"Just a driveway out to the main gates," said Sunset. "But from what I've been told, it won't open unless you have the proper security clearance codes. Why? You aren't planning on leaving already, are you?"

"Nah, I just need some air," said Rotorstorm. "'s getting' kinda stuffy in here."

"Yeah, there _is_ some sort of a problem with the ventilation, isn't there?" she asked. "Cmon, Bee can look at it later."


	13. Chapter 13

**Ch. 13: New Guy (pt. 3)**

In the main compound… "GroundBridge defrag at 76% completion," said T-AI, monitoring the levels.

"Almost there," said Wheeljack in impatient happiness.

"Look, guys, I knew Rotorstorm better than _any_ of the other Wreckers," said Jazz. "And I know there's something wrong with him."

"Hey guys," said Rotorstorm as he and Sunset walked in, Sunset once again on the floor. "What're we talkin' about?"

"I was just tellin' the guys all about you and me…" said Jazz. "Y'know, back at Darkmount Pass?"

"Oh yeah, that's one heck of a story," said Rotorstorm.

"Yep. Now tell it," Jazz said suddenly, surprising and confusing everyone. Except for Sunset; she knew where he was going with this.

"Now-now dear," said Rarity. "There's no need to get hostile."

"Stay outta this Rarity," said Jazz aggressively.

This seemed to surprise and anger her as she pouted. "Oh! Why darling Jazz, thou hast cut me to the quick," she said.

"Okay, that's it," said Rainbow. "I'm gonna be brutally honest here and say you read _way_ too much Shakespeare."

"Well he is pretty prominent, even if he never actually wrote that line," said Twilight. "But still what's the deal Jazz?"

"Trust me, girls; you're gonna want to listen to him," said Sunset, quickly making the others back down.

"Hey Jazz, take it easy will ya?" said Bumblebee, reaching for him.

"I'm not sure I-" Rotorstorm began.

"I said tell it!" said Jazz, growing angrier.

Rotorstorm stared him down for a moment before… "Ugh. Alright, fine," he said. "You wanna live in the past Jazz? Let's live in the past." And he started the story. "We were trapped between a Decepticon patrol and a smelting pit. My rotors were shot and Seaspray was only built for more standard fluids like water and oil, so we were low on options. Those cons were vicious, thirsty for Energon and bearing down on us with everything they had. Jazz and I engaged the enemy single-handedly, left 'em for scrap, then I made us an exit using their backsides as stepping stones across the molten metal." Everyone was honestly pretty amazed by this story, but then Rotorstorm turned back to Jazz. "That _is_ how it went down, isn't it?"

"Yep. To the letter," said Jazz, suddenly confusing Sunset and making the others feel content. "Except for one little detail:" Rotorstorm's eyes suddenly went wide as he realized it. "I wasn't there." All eyes turned to Jazz in surprise and confusion, even Sunset's. Rotorstorm just scowled.

"Wait, what?" asked Twilight. "Then where were you?"

"I had already left the Wreckers to join up with Optimus and the others in getting the ships off-world," said Jazz, turning back to Rotorstorm. "But you wouldn't know that if all you did was skim through Roto's public service record."

"Jazz, I'm confused," said Rarity. "What does that have anything to do with- AH!" She was suddenly interrupted when "Rotorstorm" grabbed her up in one hand and zipped over to the GroundBridge controls.

"Anyone makes a move, the human gets it!" he growled in a different voice.

"Rarity!" yelled Twilight as she almost moved to help her, but Rainbow and Applejack held her back shaking their heads. Rarity struggled against his grip to reach her geode but her arms were caught.

"Wait a second," said Bumblebee. "I recognize that voice. Pseudo?" The imposter smirked at the young scout.

"Got it in one, kid," he said before he heard Wheeljack moving for his wrench, quickly aiming a blaster at him. "Don't! Tempt me…"

"GroundBridge defrag at 90% completion," said T-AI.

"Con coward," said Jazz, pulling out his pistol. "Let the girl go and face me like a bot!"

"Don't worry about it Jazz," said Pseudo. "Plenty of fighting to come."

"Wait, if this is just an imposter, there _is_ a real Rotorstorm right?" asked Rainbow.

"Of course," said Pseudo. "Though I'm pretty sure Lord Starscream is decorating the bridge with his mangled remains by now." Jazz just growled and cocked his pistol. "Ah-ah-ah. I wouldn't do that if I were you. My hand actuators have been a bit… finicky lately." Jazz still didn't relent as he kept his gun trained on him.

On the _Nemesis_ , Starscream was rallying his soldiers. "Are you more than certain we are at the coordinates you supplied to Pseudo?" he asked angrily.

"Without question," said Thundercracker.

"Then where in the name of Unicron is the GroundBridge?" asked Starscream.

"Well maybe your boy got such a hero's welcome that he got the 'warm-n-fuzzies' and decided to defect," suggested Rotorstorm who walked up onto the main deck, loaded down with all his weapons, sliding up his mouthguard.

Starscream chuckled. "Can you not see that you are vastly outnumbered?" he asked, indicating to the Seekers.

"I see a bunch of guys who might vastly enjoy watching me break you down into spare parts," said Rotorstorm, pulling out his swords.

Starscream just growled and pointed at him in anger. "Eviscerate him!" he ordered and the Seekers opened fire. Even under his mask, he could see Rotorstorm smirk as he charged, deflecting blasts with his blades and giving a savage war-cry.

At the base, Pseudo had just entered the _Nemesis_ 's coordinates into the GroundBridge computer and managed to speed up the defrag to finish instantly. "GroundBridge defrag complete," said T-AI, somehow locked out of her own systems.

"'Bout damn time," said Pseudo as he pulled the levers and opened the vortex, with it opening on the other side just as Rotorstorm had sliced up several Vehicons and landed right in front of Starscream and his brothers, terrifying them. Then he noticed the vortex.

"Now how's that for timing?" he asked. Pseudo backed away toward the vortex, still holding the struggling Rarity and under Jazz's crosshairs with a smirk on his face.

"Let's get this party started," he said happily.

"Took the words right outta my mouth," said Rotorstorm as he jumped out of the vortex and dogpiled the con, prompting him to suddenly send Rarity flying through the air straight to Jetfire's hand.

"You alright love?" he asked.

"Whew," she said, getting over the adrenaline. "Not to offend you or anything dear, but I think I've suddenly come down with a fear of flying."

"I'd shut the door before the slag comes through if I were you," Rotorstorm said to Wheeljack.

"Doing it," said the mechanic, quickly forcing the lever up and sealing the vortex just before Starscream could enter on the other side. Quickly, both Rotorstorms shot their faceplates up and drew their blades, circling the complex. Jazz was about to shoot at the one that was obviously Pseudo, but Rotorstorm just pushed his gun down with the flat of his blade.

"Don't. Handsome's mine," he said feeling narcissistic. With that, the two engaged in the most intense samurai-style swordfight anyone there had ever seen, eventually making the others lose track of which one was which, until one of them straight-up decked the other one in the face so hard, that he reverted back to his original black form.

"Nice one, Roto," said Jazz as he patted his friend on the back. Rotorstorm smirked as he lowered his faceplate and sheathed his swords.

"You. Hit the switch," he said to T-AI. "It's time to take out the trash."

"Affirmative," she said. "GroundBridge activating." The vortex then activated as Rotorstorm stepped back.

"All yours buddy," he said to Jazz, who picked up the Shifter and tossed him through at the Vehicons that were already on their way down.

"Oh scrap, back-back-back-back-backbackback!" said one of them as they all started running back to the _Nemesis_ , just before Pseudo hit him square in the back and knocked them all to the deck before landing right on top of Starscream.

"OOH-hohohoho! That's gotta hurt," said Skywarp. Then the vortex closed as Starscream tossed the Shifter off of him.

"Ugh. Well, I suppose plan A was a bust," he growled. "Did you at least learn the location of their base?"

"Indeed Lord Starscream," said Pseudo. "It is in a small bunker, hidden in the hills just outside of-" He was interrupted when Starscream saw the blinking and beeping mass of metal on his hip; one of Rotorstorm's rockets that he had attached and armed on a timer before Jazz tossed him through.

"GAH! Back, back, back!" he said as he, his brothers and Soundwave all ran to the door inside. Pseudo looked at it and even without him having a face, one could tell he was grimacing.

"Oh scrap," he groaned just before it literally blew up in his face, blowing him and most of the Seekers on the deck to hell.

"Pseudo! You fool!" growled Starscream as the four scrambled inside just before the blast reached them.

At base the next morning, Optimus was back and the team was rocking out to the Rainbooms' music as Wheeljack was fixing the GroundBridge controls again, still annoyed by the music. Then Bumblebee walked in just as the girls finished their song, toolbox in hand.

"Thanks for letting me know about that ventilation problem Sunset," he said. "I figured there was something wrong."

"I'm just glad Pseudo brought it up," said Sunset, the band's transformations remaining for a few seconds. "Never would've noticed it otherwise." Then they reverted back to normal.

"That's probably gonna take some getting used to," said Sunstreaker, scratching his head at the magic.

"Now that you're officially part of Team Prime, we gotta pick out an alt-mode for ya," Jazz said to Rotorstorm. "I think I've got some ideas."

"Yeah… about that Jazz," said Rotorstorm, adjusting his helmet. "Now that my ship's fixed, I'm kinda itchin' to see what else is out there."

"Wait a moment," said Rarity. "You mean you're leaving?"

"I can sympathize Rarity," said Twilight. "When I first discovered the magic in this world at Crystal Prep, I wanted to know what was out in the city. And well, turns out it was amazing knowledge and a bunch of great friends."

"That's what _I'm_ goin' for too, kid," said Rotorstorm, smirking at her.

"Besides Rare, some bots never change," said Jazz, patting his friend on the shoulder with a chuckle.

"Rotorstorm, at least leave knowing that you will always have a haven here," said Optimus, offering him a hand which Rotorstorm graciously accepted.

"Thanks, chief," he replied.

"That's Roto's way Optimus," said Jazz. "He never stays…"

Rotorstorm chuckled. "But I always come back," he replied, fist-bumping his old friend. Once the two were bridged out to the Rub al Khali along with the girls, Rotorstorm was about to board when he turned back to Jazz. "Y'know I got room in here for two, buddy. Maybe more with a chassis like yours. Whaddaya say? Who knows what we might find out there? Old rivals? Maybe even some of the old Wreckin' Crew?" Jazz stood and pondered for a moment, glancing back at Rarity who was wearing a large white sunhat and her usual red sunglasses. And she seemed a bit forlorn that he might actually leave.

"Sounds like fun Roto, but… I got ties here now," he said looking back at Bumblebee and Sunstreaker. "With them." Then he looked back to Rarity. "With her." She smiled as she handed her hat to Pinkie and floated over on one of her gem shields.

"Thank you, darling," she said, giving him a small kiss on the cheek. Jazz blushed a small bit and smiled. Rotorstorm chuckled.

"I hear ya, big guy," he said. "And Rare?" This drew her attention. "Anything happens to my favorite Wrecker, I'm comin' after you."

"Not to worry darling," said Rarity. "I'll take good care of him."

"We all will," said Sunset as she produced a camera. "Now… smile!" They all did so as she snapped the photo, starting a new photo album of their adventures with the bots.


	14. Chapter 14

**Ch. 14: Convoy (pt. 1)**

One day, at base; the usual calmness was swiftly interrupted by Fowler angrily yelling over the comlink, which Optimus naturally was forced to answer.

"Good afternoon Agent Fowler," he said. "To what do we owe the-"

"What else? Cons," said Fowler, who was currently stuck in a crashed plane. "I chased 'em off with some hard ordinance, but not before they blew me outta the sky."

"Pfft. Again?" smirked Rainbow, remembering the Laserbeak incident.

"Once I was grounded, they tried a smash-n-grab for the DNGS in the hold," said Fowler.

"The what now?" asked Bumblebee as Pinkie let out a small snicker.

"Dynamic Nuclear Generation System. DNGS for short," said Fowler, pressing up a button to show a large metallic block in the hold of his plane. "It's a prototype energy system that I'm porting to California for testing."

"Pfft. That's ridiculous," said Wheeljack. "We Cybertronians developed and then discontinued nuclear technology millions of years ago. Even if we hadn't, the Decepticons have access to almost all the Energon deposits on Earth. Why would Starscream bother with such primitive tech?"

"I'm thinkin' to build a massive primitive weapon of mass destruction," said Fowler. "If this bad boy melts down, it would turn all of this state and about four of its neighbors into an American Chernobyl."

"Sheesh," said Sunset before she realized something. "Wait, what state are you in?"

"I'm a sittin' duck here Prime," said Fowler, ignoring her question. "I need you to spin up the bridge and send the DNGS to its destination before the cons come back for it."

"I don't think that's advisable Fowler," said Bumblebee. "I've analyzed nuclear technology and if there's an accident in its transport, that thing's radiation could propagate through the GroundBridge vortex and quite possibly reduce the entire planet into an atomic wasteland."

"You got any better ideas, Bee?" asked Fowler. Pinkie's face brightened as she suddenly thought of something.

"Road trip!" she called.

"What?" asked Twilight. Her questions were answered later on when they were with Fowler in… Kansas apparently, with Optimus, Ironhide, Sunstreaker and Bumblebee in their vehicular forms and the DNGS loaded into the trailer Optimus had brought with him. Fowler was in Optimus' cab and was just about to move for the wheel when…

"Ahahah, no need Agent Fowler," said Optimus, suddenly switching seats for him and generating a holographic representation of a man in a red jacket, jeans, and blue hair. "I will handle the driving."

Fowler crossed his arms. "It's gonna be a long trip," he groaned.

"Alright everyone, fire 'em up," Applejack said into her comlink, prompting the others to turn over the engines.

"Autobots, roll out!" said Optimus as the convoy drove out through the grasslands toward the nearest highway.

Perceptor tracked them from orbit as they rumbled down the road. "I'm locked onto your signals Optimus," he said as he transmitted said coordinates to the base. "Barring any unforeseen complications, you should reach rendezvous by dusk." Unfortunately, it was that very moment that an old truck moving very slowly got in their way, prompting Fowler to get angry and reach across for Optimus' horn, honking it over and over.

"Cmon Gramps, move it!" he growled. He angrily continued to do so until the truck passed, letting the convoy through, much to the discomfort and Optimus.

"Agent Fowler, is that _really_ necessary?" he asked.

"Ah, don't tell me you're one of them textbook drivers," said Fowler.

"Nah! You want a _real_ textbook driver, look at Twilight," said Rainbow. "Get it?" The others gave a sort-of kind laugh at that joke, even Twilight herself.

High above, a large helicopter was flying above the convoy as Sunstreaker moved around to the front of the convoy. "They're transporting the device in an unarmed civilian truck," a male voice said into a communicator. "This is going to be a cake-walk."

"Send in the ground units," said a female voice on the other end. Down on the highway, Fowler felt like talking.

"Y'know, you guys are savin' my bacon here Prime," he said.

"We are proud to be of service," said Optimus, prompting Fowler to smirk.

"Course, not like I'd need your help if you and Megatron had stuck to tearin' up your own slice of the universe," he said.

"Are you implying that no evil existed on this planet before we arrived?" asked Optimus.

"Uh- Well no, but it was just a… _different_ evil," said Fowler, quickly changing the subject as he reached for the radio. "How bout some music? You seem like a Nashville-sound kinda bot."

"Trust me partner; he ain't," said Applejack into the radio. Then Fowler looked out in the wing mirror and saw a large green helicopter closing in.

"There he is; the Con who shot me down," he growled. "Who is it? Wingnut? Dingbat? Skyguy?"

"You're just makin' up names and hopin' ya guess right, aren't ya?" asked Applejack.

"Heads-up. Objects in mirror may be closer than they appear," said Ironhide as a fleet of green cars closed in, surrounding him and Bumblebee.

"Feeling a little constricted without the use of my stingers Optimus," said Bumblebee.

"Remain in vehicular mode unless absolutely necessary," ordered the Prime.

"A whole team of Cons," said Fowler.

"That's a negative Fowler," said Perceptor. "I'm not picking up any Energon signatures aside from yours. Either they're using some sort of cloaking tech or…" He didn't finish as it almost seemed too outlandish. Suddenly one care drove out in front of Sunstreaker, who then tried his best to shake the car.

"Oh come on," he growled. Then another car drove up next to Optimus and what should climb up from the cabin but a man in a mask with a gun.

"Pull over!" he yelled over the highway winds.

"Are you kiddin' me?" asked Fowler.

"Optimus, what's going on?" asked T-AI.

"Our assailants are not Decepticons," he replied. "They are human."

The group back at base was greatly confused, except Rainbow. "Oh please. Taking on our bots in a fight? They're scrap metal," she said. From the helicopter, a scarred man with white hair seemed to be giving the orders.

"Gentlemen, stop their engines," he said. Fowler quickly ducked just as Optimus moved and rammed the car next to him, knocking the gunner's aim off.

"Who are these guys?" asked Fowler.

"Unclear," said Optimus. "Autobots, maintain your cover. And apply minimal force; disarmament only."

"Yes sir," said the others as another car tried to come up at Optimus from the right.

"Oh no ya don't," said Sunstreaker, ramming them with his back bumper and then his side, knocking the soldiers inside off the road into a crash, though it did leave Sunstreaker with a few scratches. "Ugh. Great. I just got this new paint job."

"Those are not civilian drivers," said the enemy leader. The convoy was taking a few turns rather sharply, making Fowler apparently roadsick.

"Could use some air," he said, rolling down his window and putting his head out it. Then he saw another soldier jumping out of his car on to the connection between Optimus and his trailer, apparently trying to cut the connection. "Prime! Bear left!" Optimus quickly did so, running the car off the road but the soldier remained onboard and kept cutting. "Keep my seat warm, I got this." With that, Fowler climbed out of Optimus' cabin and grabbed him, holding him off the side. "You're gonna tell me everything I wanna know-" He'd never get the chance as a tree-branch whacked the soldier out of Fowler's hand.

" _Ohhhhhh_ -hohohohoho! That looked _painful_!" said Bumblebee as he passed the tree. Fowler just climbed back onboard Optimus' cabin and strapped back in. Then the enemy commander came in over the radio.

"I hope you take better care of the DNGS than you do your captives," he said. Fowler looked out of the truck and saw the copter flying directly over them.

"Special Agent William Fowler of the United States Government here," he replied. "Identify yourself."

"I am Silas, but of greater consequence to you; we are MECH," he replied.

"MECH? I feel like I've heard of those guys," said Twilight, looking them up at the base.

"Fair warning; we will be helping ourselves to your device," said Silas. "Even if it means inflicting casualties."

"Is that so? Tell me Si," said Fowler. "What's the market price for a DNGS these days?"

"What makes you think we intend to sell it, Agent Fowler?" asked Silas.

"Found it," said Twilight. "MECH is a technology-based terrorist organization, apparently bent on conquering the world."

"Figures," said Sunset. "That's what almost all supervillain organizations want."

"There's a war brewing," said Silas. "Between the new world order, and the newest. The victor will be the side armed with all the most innovative technology." Then a soldier popped up out of one of the cars near Ironhide and shot several strange objects at the locks for Optimus' trailer, breaking them and opening the trailer.

Fowler smirked, knowing what else was inside that trailer. "So Si, you think MECH has all the most radical tech?" he asked. Once the soldier was nearly ready to jump in, Arcee quickly jumped out in her bike mode.

"YEE-HAW!" she yelled, knocking the car into a crash which sent another car flipping over it and landing just behind Ironhide before it exploded. "Whoo! Hahaha!"

"Definitely not civilian drivers," said the soldier in the copter with Silas.

"Ciao Si," said Fowler as he dropped his walkie-talkie.

"Agent Fowler, do not take this Silas lightly," said Optimus, his hologram turning to the soldier with a serious look on its face. "Megatron preached the exact same ideology as him before plunging Cybertron into the great civil war that destroyed our world."

"Optimus, this is Perceptor," said the satellite. "Prepare to initiate phase two. Just take the next turn south in five miles and you'll reach the rendezvous." Unfortunately, Soundwave had picked up on this particular tidbit and relayed it to Starscream and his brothers.

"So the Autobots are outside the confines of their base, and seem otherwise occupied," said Starscream, turning to his brothers. "Which means they will never see us coming."

"Seekers, fall in," said Skywarp as a group of flyers marched up. "You're with me. We're going hunting."

"Yes lieutenant Skywarp," they said and bowed, making Starscream smirk.


	15. Chapter 15

**Ch. 15: Convoy (pt. 2)**

Down on the ground, the convoy was racing alongside a railroad line near a train traveling the same way. "There's our rendezvous," said Fowler, pointing to the long train tunnel up ahead.

"Autobots, maintain tight formation and make for the tunnel," said Optimus.

"Yes sir," they all said as they jumped the ridge and punched it alongside the train. MECH quickly followed suit which Ironhide picked up on.

"Permission to employ explosives in a confined space, Optimus?" he asked.

"Permission granted," the Prime replied. At that, Ironhide shot out his rear wheels and blasted a missile out of the rig on each side, which hit the opening for the tunnel and blocked it.

"That oughtta slow 'em down," said Sunstreaker. "Let's make this quick." With that in mind, he transformed and flipped on top of one car of the train, giving a light knock. "Delivery."

"Tactical error," said Silas, referring to the blasted-down tunnel roof. "Only one way out." And he was right as he saw the train and convoy drive out of the tunnel, with the Autobots driving back up onto the highway. Suddenly six purple jets led by a stealth fighter flew into the area in a formation, bearing down on the convoy.

"Air support?" asked Fowler. "Ours or theirs?"

"Neither," said Bumblebee, catching the stealth fighter in his wing-mirror. "Decepticons."

"I can confirm that," said Perceptor. "It's Skywarp. You'd better watch your backs."

"Alright, Seekers, into formation!" ordered Skywarp as they all flew into a wedge formation. "Missiles hot! Fire!" With that, all seven jets fired off missiles targeting the convoy.

"Military fired on one of their own?" asked a confused Silas.

"Incoming!" yelled Sunstreaker. Quickly giving a hard right, Optimus swerved and unlocked the trailer, sending it rattling to a stop just as the missiles hit it. The blast was huge, but MECH's sensors said something unusual.

"Sir, I'm not picking up any radiation," said the pilot. "The DNGS didn't melt down."

"No. It didn't," said Silas curiously. The Autobots were then swiftly cornered on a cliff as Skywarp and his Seekers transformed back to robot form, weapons aimed at them.

"Alright Prime, surrender the war now and I _might_ be willing to show you mercy," he said.

"Agent Fowler, I'm afraid that if we are all to survive, it has become absolutely necessary to drop our cover," said Optimus. "To this end, I would heavily recommend you vacate my cabin and achieve higher ground."

"Will do," said Fowler, quickly jumping from the cab and running up a ridge. Once done, the Autobots quickly transformed ready to fight. Unfortunately, Silas saw the whole thing.

"So… the rumors are true," he said. "Living technology stands before us. Though perhaps not for much longer."

"Whew," said Ironhide stretching himself out and switching his wrist-mounted weapons into large punching rigs. "Man y'know, after a long road trip, it feels really good to get outta the car, stretch my servos, and _kick some TAILPIPE!_ Whoo!" Then he and the others charged the Decepticons, who quickly extended the same courtesy to them. Arcee stayed on the high ground near Fowler with her crossbow and started sniping the soldiers to soften them up for Optimus and Ironhide's bludgeoning, Sunstreaker's martial arts and Bumblebee's outboxer-style boxing.

"Sir," said Silas' pilot. "If the DNGS wasn't in the truck, then where-?"

"Yes that," said Silas, quickly calling Fowler. "Agent Fowler, you lead a charmed life walking among titans."

"Cmon down, I'll introduce ya," he said into his walkie-talkie.

"In due time," said Silas. "But in the meantime, I can't help but wonder how it is that the DNGS disappeared without a trace." Fowler could remember clear as a bell what had happened after Sunstreaker knocked on that train car;

Once the door opened, the soldier inside it was honestly a bit surprised to see Sunstreaker there. "Howdy!" he said. "Somebody order a DNGS?" With that, Arcee slid it out of the trailer to Bumblebee who was hanging off the opening of the trailer, who then passed the item to Ironhide who was sitting on the train, then to Sunstreaker who then loaded it in the train.

"Much obliged," said the soldier.

"Just doin' our job, pal," said Sunstreaker before everyone transformed back and they drove out.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have a train to catch," said Silas, making Fowler realize where he was going with this.

"We got a problem," Fowler said to Arcee.

"I heard," she said, turning on her coms. "Optimus, Silas got wise to phase two. He's heading to intercept the train now."

"Understood," said Optimus, sadly leaving himself open to a blast from Skywarp which knocked him clean off the cliff, knocking him into a daze.

"Optimus!" called Arcee as she saw him go over. "Guys, cover me! I gotta go help him!"

"You got it," said Sunstreaker still pounding some of the Seekers into the ground, allowing Arcee to slide down the ridge and bust out a small medical kit.

"Arcee to base; Prime is down and MECH is en route to the train," she said into the coms. "Request advisement."

"Alright Sunset, think," she said pacing the area. "If Silas wants that DNGS, he'll have to get his men onto the train."

"What if we get on first? Y'know, run some human-on-human interference?" suggested Rainbow.

"Absolutely not," said Wheeljack firmly.

"Yeah, that'd be suicide," said Sunset.

"Uh yeah but hello? The United States of _Meltdown_ calling?" Rainbow asked sarcastically. "Lives are at stake."

"Yeah. Yours," said T-AI. "You want us to not only bridge you into a confined space but one currently traveling at 90 miles per hour?"

"Oy, I can't even count the number of ways that could go wrong," said Wheeljack. "I mean cmon; mass displacement trauma, twisted limbs, metal-burn…" The girls all looked at him unusually with the last item on that list. "Well… okay, maybe not that third thing. Look; regardless, it would be almost impossible to fix GroundBridge coordinates on something moving that fast."

"Would it help if we had access to the train's coordinates?" asked Twilight, pulling up said coordinates.

"Well…" said Wheeljack thoughtfully.

"How did you get this?" asked Sunset.

"The DNGS has a tracking device loaded in," said Twilight. "I just hacked into it."

"Nice work," said Rainbow. "Alright, let's do this."

"Ah-ah-ah, not like that," said Wheeljack. "You'll need equipment." Meanwhile, MECH had launched some sort of electroshock weapon that attached to the train and stunned all aboard before the copter moved to land. In the DNGS' car, a GroundBridge portal suddenly appeared inside and tossed Rainbow and Sunset inside; both wearing powerful suits of armor and carrying semi-automatic slug-thrower pistols.

"We're in," Sunset said into her helmet's comlink.

"Copy that," said Twilight. "What's the status of the car?" Looking around Sunset saw plenty.

"Guard's out, but still alive," she said. "DNGS is still here and it looks intact." Then they heard the helicopter's rotors up top and opening the door and looking out confirmed it. "Guys, Silas is landing on top of the car. Could use some support down here."

"Right then," said Rarity. "There's a junction 20 seconds ahead. Best brace yourselves." Twilight quickly hacked like there was no tomorrow, switching the track so that the train quickly turned to the left, throwing the helicopter off course for landing.

"What was that?" asked Silas angrily.

"Hacker," said the pilot, pressing a button on the console. " _Former_ hacker, I mean." Turned out that button transmitted a targeted computer virus back to base, shorting out Twilight's laptop and making the system lose the train's coordinates.

"Aw man, I just got this thing," said Twilight bitterly.

"What have I been saying all along about Earthling technology?" asked Ratchet.

"Not helping," said Applejack. This time, Silas' helicopter landed perfectly and a soldier got out to start cutting open the car.

"So what'd that buy us? 30 seconds?" asked Sunset.

"You're losing your touch, Twilight," said Rainbow, pulling out her pistols. "Guess we're doing this the hard way."

"Guess so," said Sunset, drawing her guns as well. Meanwhile, on the ridge, all the Vehicons had been scrapped and Skywarp had been forced to retreat. Thankfully, Arcee had patched up Optimus and he had just regained consciousness.

"How you feeling sir?" she asked.

"Ugh. Like Devastator just kicked me," he groaned and focused on the train in the distance. "If you'll excuse me."

"Be my guest," said Arcee as she let him get up and run after the train before she started climbing back up the ridge just in time to see Bumblebee short the last Vehicon out with his stingers.

"Whew. Well, that was fun," he said. "Where's Optimus?"

"He had a train to catch," said Fowler, watching him run. On the train, the panel in the roof just gave way and fell in, revealing three MECH agents.

"Hands where we can see 'em," said Rainbow as she and Sunset pointed their guns at them in forced bravado. The soldiers didn't relent but then Silas' pilot saw something.

"Sir, we've got company," he said, pointing at Optimus who was running along the ridge nearby but then quickly transformed to drive and keep up better.

"Retreat," ordered Silas, calling the soldiers on the train back to the copter. Sunset had accidentally pulled the trigger and wounded one of them, but it wasn't too serious.

"Whew," said Sunset, lifting her helmet's visor as she and Rainbow watched from the door. "Well, that was easy."

"First rule of combat;" said Silas, brandishing an RPG. "Never leave the enemy with the spoils." With that in mind, he fired the rocket way out in front of the train, blasting a large crater in front of it.

"Oh boy," said Rainbow, leaning back and getting on the coms. "Wheeljack, MECH blew the tracks. You've gotta bridge us and the DNGS outta here right now. Guards too."

"That's a no-can-do, RD," said Wheeljack. "MECH cut us off from the train's data. I can't bridge you back to base without your coordinates." Quickly, he patched through to Optimus. "Optimus, Sunset and Rainbow are on that train and MECH just blew the tracks."

"I'm on my way," said Optimus. "Maximum Overdrive!" With that, he quickly accessed a nitrous tank which let him go much faster and start to catch up.

"You think we should jump?" asked Rainbow.

"This thing isn't Bumblebee, Rainbow," said Sunset. "And we're going 90."

"It's the impact or the radiation. Pick your poison," said Rainbow.

"Ugh, what were we thinking volunteering for this job?" asked Sunset.

"Well hey," said Rainbow, looking at her friend. "At least we're going out together." Sunset gave a small smile and got back on the coms.

"Hey Twilight, if we don't make it outta this, I just wanna say it's been great being your friend," she said. "Also, tell everyone at school we died in a car crash, and tell Flash I always actually kinda **did** _like him_ like him." Then Rainbow saw Optimus racing past with two strong honks of his horn.

"Don't read the will just yet," she smirked. Quickly Optimus transformed and jumped in front of the train, grabbing the engine with both hands and planting his feet as hard as he could. But it still wasn't enough so he let the engine hit his chest as he drew his axes, magnetically locked them to his hands and drove them into the dirt on either side of the engine, giving loud groans in anger-fueled pain as it screeched onward. But finally, he managed to stop it just as his feet reached the edges of the crater. Once there, he let his axes go and fell, exhausted into the crater letting his mouth-guard drop. Looking to the side, he was pleased to see Sunset and Rainbow jump off the train and run to a large boulder nearby. Sunset looked back at Optimus and removed her helmet, giving him a smirk and thumbs-up which the large Autobot weakly returned. Then he locked onto Silas' helicopter hovering above.

"Well-played visitor," said Silas, looking over a scan of the large bot he had complied. "But MECH still has home-field and we will find a way to level _this_ particular playing field. Even if we need to open you up to see what makes you tick." With that, the copter simply flew away.

"Optimus, how are you and the others?" asked Twilight nervously.

"Intact, Twilight," he replied as he got up and rearmed himself. "As is the objective. Crisis averted. But the world in which we live is a different one than previously noted. One which has spawned its own Decepticons… in human skin…"


End file.
